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Fenway Park. Photo: Photo: Omar Rawlings/Getty Image
Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora and nearly a dozen players say they'll skip this afternoon's visit to the White House to celebrate the team's World Series championship, AP's Jonathan Lemire writes.
Why it matters: All those bypassing the ceremony with President Trump, including American League MVP Mookie Betts, are players of color. Every white player on the team — as well as J.D. Martinez, who is of Cuban descent — is expected to attend.
Those around the Red Sox locker room stressed that a player's decision to attend was a personal choice and not, in many cases, political.
- The racial disparity received attention after pitcher David Price, an African American who said he would not attend, retweeted longtime Boston sports columnist Steve Buckley: "Basically, it's the white Sox who'll be going."
The context: A championship team's coach rarely, if ever, misses the White House visit.
- But the events have taken on sharp political overtones since Trump took office.
- Cora has cited his frustration with the administration’s handling of hurricane recovery in his native Puerto Rico.
The big picture ... The split reflects a larger trend across baseball: A number of players hail from Trump-friendly states like Texas and Florida, while the sport has also seen a surge in Latino players and a decline in African Americans.