Giants manager Gabe Kapler on Tuesday strongly responded to racist messages directed at reliever Jay Jackson on social media after Monday night’s game.
“There’s no place for racist comments to our players on social media period. They are completely unacceptable. Disgusting,” Kapler told reporters (h/t The Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly) before the Giants-Diamondbacks game at Chase Field on Tuesday.
“And not just in baseball, but in society in general. I was really taken aback. I know our entire clubhouse was. We understand that the comments that were made are not at all representative of our incredible fan base. Our fan base is wonderful and especially supportive.
“And I think what we saw was once Jay shared what happened, the Giants fans came out in bunches in support of Jay with really loving, caring comments, and I thought that was phenomenal, and we need to talk about this.
“It needs to be something that isn’t like, here and gone. It should be discussed because it was really, really disturbing for all of us and it just can’t happen.”
Jackson, who is Black, shared late Monday night racist and abusive comments he received on social media after he gave up three runs in two-thirds of an inning in the Giants’ eventual 11-8 extra-inning win over Arizona.
Jackson told reporters (h/t Kerry Crowley of the San Jose Mercury News) he has dealt with racism his entire life but is thankful for the outpouring of support he’s received from Giants fans and the entire organization.
Jackson, 33, has been solid in his middle-relief role since he made his Giants debut on July 16. His ERA stood at 2.35 heading into Monday night’s game before the three earned runs inflated it to 5.40.
Jackson made his MLB debut in 2015 with the San Diego Padres and also pitched in 2019 with the Milwaukee Brewers. He bounced around a few different organizations and had two stints in Japan before signing a minor league contract with the Giants on Jan. 8.
