Yuli Gurriel, one of the key hitters for the Houston Astros, was suspended for five games without pay at the start of the 2018 season after television cameras caught him making a gesture and mouthing a word with racial overtones during Friday’s game.
Commissioner Rob Manfred announced the suspension at 1:05 p.m. PDT during a news conference in Houston after he met with Gurriel on Saturday before the Astros were to play the Dodgers in Game 4 of the World Series.
Gurriel also will have to undergo sensitivity training.
After Gurriel hit a home run off the Dodgers’ Yu Darvish in Friday’s game, Gurriel returned to the Astros’ dugout. He put his fingers to the sides of his face and lifted the corners of his eyes, the “slanted eyes” gesture widely regarded as offensive by Asians. Gurriel also used the word “Chinito,” Spanish slang for Chinese boy.
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“It’s been in Ohio as early as the mid-1850s at least, brought in as an ornamental plant because of its unique foliage and white flowers,” Gardner said. “It was actually planted in people’s landscaping, and it has been spreading.”