Cleveland Indians infielder Yu Chang shared on Twitter that he received racist messages on social media after his decisive throwing error in Cleveland’s loss to the White Sox on Monday.
Chang tweeted early Tuesday morning: “Use your freedom of speech properly, I accept all comments, positive or negative, but DEFINITELY NOT RACISTS. Thank you all and love you all. #StopAsianHate.”
Chang’s tweet included a screenshot of anti-Asian racist messages he allegedly received from three different users. Two of the accounts no longer exist as of Tuesday morning, and the third is private.
Cleveland lost 4-3 on Monday-evening when Chang hit Chicago’s Yasmani Grandal with a throw while trying to force him to second base in the ninth inning, enabling Nick Madrigal to score the winning run.
Chang, who played first base, fielded the one-out grounder by Nick Williams and tried to get Grandal to second base instead of stepping on first base for the second out. His throw hit Grandal in the helmet and the ball bounced off the left side of the infield as Madrigal rushed home.
Chang, 25, is from Taiwan and has played with the Indians for three seasons. He mainly played shortstop and third base throughout his career, never having first base this season.
According to a recent report from the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, hate crimes against Asian Americans have risen nearly 150% in major American cities in the past year.
The #StopAsianHate movement gained national attention last month after a white man murdered eight people – including six people of Asian descent – in a series of shootings at spas in the Atlanta area.