Boston Red Sox relief pitcher Hector Velasquez said Wednesday he would opt out of the team’s planned trip to the White House because of President Donald Trump’s previous comments about Mexico and Mexicans.
Velazquez, the only Mexican on Boston’s latest World Series-winning team, told MassLive he “would rather not offend anyone” in his home country by visiting Trump, who has repeatedly disparaged Mexican and Central and South American migrants crossing the southern border.
“I made the choice not to go because, as we know, the president has said a lot of stuff about Mexico,” Velazquez said Wednesday through a translator, according to the site.