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Former Tigers pitching coach Chris Bosio directed a racial slur toward a clubhouse attendant following a game this past week, The Athletic has learned, precipitating his firing Wednesday.
Bosio called the attendant, who is African-American, a “monkey,” according to four team sources. The remark was directed toward the young man, who was collecting towels from the coaches’ room at the time, during a post-game gripe session in which Bosio was lamenting about a pitcher.
During this exchange, Bosio made a derogatory comment about one of the Tigers pitchers and then gestured toward the attendant before adding, “like this monkey here,” the sources said. The attendant pushed back at Bosio for the comment, and an additional team employee witnessed the exchange. Bosio was provided an opportunity to apologize to the attendant after his outburst but declined to do so, according to multiple sources.
These sources spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.
It took less than 48 hours for the Tigers to conduct an internal investigation, led by general manager Al Avila and the team’s general counsel and assistant general manager John Westhoff, who is in his 15th season with the Tigers. Westhoff has a background in labor law and previously worked for Major League Baseball. The move was made swiftly and, according to one source, the decision to fire Bosio was unanimous, with essentially no dissent among team leadership.
In the statement issued by the team immediately following his dismissal, the Tigers noted that Bosio’s actions violated the “Uniform Employee contract” and that his “insensitive comments” violated team policy.
According to Avila, Bosio was fired prior to Wednesday’s game and the team was notified prior to the club’s 3-0 loss to the Oakland Athletics.
“For me, and our organization, we felt this was a much-needed move,” Avila said on Wednesday.
Bosio did not return messages seeking comment. Avila and Westhoff could not be immediately reached for comment on Friday. A spokesperson for team owner Chris Ilitch did not immediately return messages. The Tigers declined to comment on the specifics of the incident, beyond the team’s official statement on Wednesday.
In his first public comments following his dismissal, Bosio told USA Today on Thursday that he was “in shock” over what had transpired and the 55-year-old former MLB pitcher said that his comments were misinterpreted. Bosio claimed that he was referring to Tigers reliever Daniel Stumpf as “Spider Monkey” because of the strange faces the lefty makes when he works out. Bosio claimed that this is Stumpf’s nickname, and that the clubhouse attendant heard the word “monkey.”
“I’ve got [sic] protect myself someway,’’ Bosio said, according to USA Today, “because this is damaging as hell to me. I’ve got to fight for myself. Everyone knows this is not me. I didn’t use any profanity. There was no vulgarity. The N-word wasn’t used. No racial anything. It was a comment, and a nickname we used for a player.
“This kid and I had a great relationship. This kid played jokes on me all spring, and I told him, ‘Now you’re offended, because you heard the word ‘monkey,’ or ‘spider monkey,’ and it’s not even directed at you.’’
“We crack fat jokes on our trainer every day. All kinds of things are said in a baseball clubhouse. And for this to happen to me?
“I don’t know what else to say, but I know I don’t deserve this.’’
Stumpf told The Detroit Free Press Thursday night that he was not aware of that nickname. All four sources who spoke to The Athletic disputed Bosio’s account.
The rebuilding Tigers brought in Bosio to work with the club’s young staff because of his reputation as a shrewd teacher whose hand-on methods seemed to coax the most out of his charges. He was, from all indications, very well liked by the club’s pitchers, many of whom were already thriving under Bosio’s tutelage and enjoyed his fastidious and individually-tailored approach.
Players were stunned to hear the news and some said they had no knowledge of what happened until that team meeting on Wednesday.
“We all understand the nature of this business and the world we live in, and some things are unacceptable,” Wilson said. “From what we were told, it crossed those lines, and it is what it is. I don’t know the exact content of what was said. I just know it crossed a barrier that is unforgivable.”
In the wake of Bosio’s sudden dismissal, former bullpen coach Rick Anderson has been promoted to working with the team’s pitchers. Anderson spent over a decade as manager Ron Gardenhire’s pitching coach during their time with the Twins organization and is already familiar with the team’s staff.
“We’re just going to go about our business, and it’ll be fine,” Gardenhire said on Thursday. “It happens and we can’t do too much about it.”
While Bosio seemed to enjoy strong reviews among his pitchers prior to the incident, the same support was not shared in all corners of the clubhouse. Several sources told The Athletic that his personality grated on fellow members of the team’s coaching staff as well as support staff members, and that he had become increasingly alienated as a result.
According to these sources, Bosio was forceful about his own objectives (defensive shifts were a source of particular frustration) and showed little receptivity to outside ideas. His brash demeanor and unwillingness to work collaboratively caused clashes with other personalities on staff.
One MLB source described Bosio as “ornery” and another indicated that his polarizing personality was what hastened his departure from the Chicago Cubs in 2017. Though Bosio helped mold a staff that went on to win a World Series title in 2016, he was not retained this offseason, when the club announced in October that it would not exercise the 2018 club option on Bosio’s contract. It was a move that was initially met with some surprise, though Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein had previously indicated that the team was displeased with the staff’s high walk rate, which he deemed “unacceptable.”
If Bosio decides to pursue a lawsuit against the Tigers, it will not be his only pending legal action. Bosio has multiple liens and judgments against him and he continues to be embroiled in proceedings with his ex-wife, Suzanne, for whom he filed for divorce in 2012 and was granted a divorce in 2014.
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That person should @jack about it