Boston Red Sox player Willson Contreras reportedly challenged a fan to a fight via social media after being ejected from Tuesday's game against the Washington Nationals.
The incident occurred after a fan posted an insult on an Instagram account, calling Contreras a "p—y." Contreras allegedly responded in a since-deleted comment, "Come meet me at Fenway."
Contreras' comment was made on a post sharing a video of his ejection during the Red Sox's 8-1 home loss to the Nationals. The ejection happened in the bottom of the fourth inning after pitcher Cade Cavalli struck Contreras out and told him to "sit down, boy."
Contreras, who is Venezuelan, questioned the remark after the game, telling MassLive, "I don’t know if it’s racist or not. But I’ll let MLB handle that."
As Contreras approached the pitcher, dugouts and bullpens cleared. Boston catcher Carlos Narvaez attempted to restrain Contreras, but he again moved toward the opposing players, eventually removing his helmet and throwing it in the direction of Cavalli. Contreras, Red Sox outfielder Nate Eaton, interim manager Chad Tracy, and Nationals pitcher Miles Mikolas were ejected. Cavalli was not ejected.
Tensions between Contreras and Cavalli had begun earlier in the game when the two players brushed past each other near their respective dugouts in the first inning.
This was Contreras' second ejection in as many nights. He was also ejected on Monday for tapping his helmet to challenge a call that was not reviewable. "I feel like everything’s against me right now," Contreras said. "Got ejected (Monday) night for nothing. I got ejected today even though I was walking back to the dugout. And that’s why I’m not gonna say much — because, like I said, if I say something, they’re gonna use it against me."