On Opening Day, several Yankees fans allegedly aimed questionable chants at Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Teoscar Hernandez, who is from the Dominican Republic.
An Opening Day pitching matchup between Gerrit Cole and the AL East favorite New York Yankees and Hyun-Jin Ryu and the upstart Toronto Blue Jays briefly took a backseat to some despicable behavior from a number of so-called Yankees fans in the Bronx.
As great as it is having fans back in stadiums across baseball, with it comes questionable behavior. In this case, should the events prove accurate, all involved will likely receive a ban from Yankee Stadium if identified.
According to Zack Hample, a few Yankee fans aimed questionable taunts at Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Teoscar Hernandez. There are a few accounts. The ‘Bleacher Creatures’ in right field at Yankee Stadium are among the most notable fan groups in all of baseball, and lumping them all in with this group is unfair.
Hample has since deleted his tweets, with a follow-up explanation detailing that the chant is a “sensitive issue.”
To make matters a little better, Hernandez hit an absolute bomb to tie the game at two runs apiece.
Teoscar Hernandez is from the Dominican Republic, and coming off a breakout season for Toronto
Hernandez serves as the Jays cleanup hitter and has a tremendous baseball story that MLB ought to highlight if they haven’t already. In May of 2019, Hernandez was sent down the Triple-A Buffalo after striking out four times in a game right after then-phenom Vladmir Guerrero, Jr. hit two home runs. He was written off.
About two years later, Hernandez has reworked his swing and cemented himself in the middle of Toronto’s lineup. In a shortened 2020 season, Hernandez showed off his power, hitting 16 home runs and 34 RBIs in 50 games.
Hernandez will not allow the actions of these few opposing fans to define him, but frankly, it’s not something any professional athlete should have to deal with. Here’s to hoping Rob Mandred and MLB getting down to the bottom of whatever happened at Yankee Stadium on Thursday afternoon.