Marlins outfielder Lewis Brinson has expressed doubt after the Colorado Rockies seemed to clear a fan who was accused of directing a racial slur at Brinson during a game at Coors Field in Denver on Sunday.
Brinson, speaking to reporters on a conference call before the Marlins' loss to the Padres in San Diego on Monday night, said he didn't hear the fan in question during the game, but after reviewing video of the incident, he doesn't necessarily agree with the Rockies' position that the fan was in fact calling for "Dinger," the team's mascot, rather than using the N-word.
"So I watched the video at least 50 times in the past 15-16 hours," Brinson said, according to the Associated Press. "I watched it a lot, especially when I heard that he said 'Dinger' instead of the N-word.
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"I personally -- this is again my personal opinion -- I personally keep hearing the N-word. It's not that I want to hear it, I never want to hear it. Personally I've never been called that in person to my face on the baseball field, outside the baseball field, ever, so I don't know what my reaction would be if I got called that."
The Rockies on Monday said they investigated the incident, going over video and speaking with the fan in question, who was sat behind home plate. They also said they were contacted by fans sat near the man who claimed they did not hear a slur.
The team concluded that the man was shouting toward the team's purple dinosaur mascot "in hopes of getting attention for a photo."
Brinson said his aim isn't to cause trouble for the fan.
"I haven't talked to the Rockies or that fan personally," he said. "If that's the case, then I'm sorry for any backlash or anything he's getting right now."
Brinson said he was shocked after Sunday's game when he first learned of the suspected racist abuse, which was widely condemned, including by the Rockies.
"My initial reaction was upset, man. Nobody wants to be called that. It's a disrespectful, disgusting word that belittles my people, Black people. It's a disgusting word and nobody wants to hear it," Brinson said on Monday. "I was in shock.
"I'm getting a lot of love and support on Instagram and I'm sure on Twitter. I appreciate that wholeheartedly, 100%. Again I'm a human, I have sympathy. If he was yelling for the mascot, I am sorry for any backlash or any unnecessary attention he's getting right now," he said.
The 27-year-old outfielder said he was thankful not to have experienced such abuse in the past, but pointed out that it's not uncommon in baseball.
"This does happen in our game," he said. "I don't know if a lot of people know this. Again personally, I've never been called that ... but I know a lot of Black players have, and it's disgusting and needs to stop like right now. There's no place for that in sports, there's no place for that in life. I just don't want to have that situation thrown under the rug."
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