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Josh Donaldson Handed Down Punishment Over ‘Jackie’ Comment

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New York Yankees' Josh Donaldson reacts after striking out during the first inning of a spring training baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Saturday, April 2, 2022, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

New York Yankees third baseman Josh Donaldson was trending this weekend for all the wrong reasons.

During the series against the White Sox, the Yanks continued the bad blood with their American League foe. But when Donaldson continuously called Sox shortstop Tim Anderson, “Jackie”, things went overboard.

When Anderson and catcher Yasmani Grandal took exception, benches cleared and several players on both sides had to be restrained. After the game, people on the Sox and in Anderson’s circle called out Donaldson over the “racist” comment.

When the MLB looked into the situation between Josh Donaldson and Tim Anderson, it announced on Monday afternoon that the Yankees slugger would be suspended one game.

After the game, Josh Donaldson admitted to calling Tim Anderson ‘Jackie’, but insisted that the comment was simply a reference to a quote from the shortstop in 2019.

“So, first inning, I called him ‘Jackie.’ Let me give you a little context of that. In 2019, he said in an interview that he’s the new Jackie Robinson of baseball and he’s gonna bring back fun for the game, right? So, in 2019, when I played for Atlanta, we actually joked about that in the game. I don’t know what’s changed, and I’ve said it to him in years past — not in any manner, just joking around with the fact that he called himself Jackie Robinson. So, if something has changed from that … my meaning of that is not in any term trying to be racist, by any fact of the matter. It was just off an interview. That’s what he called himself, and we said that before and we joked about it. He laughed, whatever,” he said after the game.

Still, Josh Donaldson is adamant that his ‘Jackie’ comments to Tim Anderson did not carry racist intent, and he plans to appeal his suspension.

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