A day after furiously writing on Twitter that a Pirates player had said something racist to him during Monday’s game, Brandon Phillips proclaimed that he has no issue with Jared Hughes and that the two have sorted out matters.
Hughes hit Phillips with a pitch in the eighth inning of Monday’s game, and the two appeared to exchange words as Phillips headed to first.
According to a report from Deadspin, Phillips thought Hughes called him “boy.”
Whatever the case, Pirates MVP candidate Andrew McCutchen played mediator between the two by setting up a phone call for them on Tuesday. Both men were pleased with the results of their conversation.
“Last night, it was a heated moment for me, especially being from Stone Mountain, Ga., a lot of crazy things go down and a lot of racist stuff happened from the South,” Phillips said Tuesday, according to MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon.
“I was real [angry] about the situation. Me and Mr. Hughes, we had a great conversation before I came to the stadium today. It was the best thing that ever happened, talking to him in general about what happened and talking to him about things that I heard and stuff. It was great just to hear what he had to say and for him to hear what I had to say. It made us feel better about the situation. I respect him as a player and also as a man from the conversation me and him had.
“It was just a big misunderstanding. When you say certain things in the heat of the moment, you don’t really mean it. I understand that and you forgive people. He forgave me, and I forgive him.”
Hughes shared similar thoughts to Phillips.
“I just want to say Brandon Phillips is someone I’ve always respected as a man and as a player. I grew up watching him play, and admiring his play,” Hughes said, per MLB.com. “We talked today, and got it all cleared up. I’m glad I had a chance to tell him my side of the story myself. Anything that was said stays between Brandon and myself.”
I guess it was all one big misunderstanding, and Phillips probably regrets coming on so strongly Monday night.
