YULI GURRIEL of the Houston Astros was briefly a World Series hero Friday night, when he broke a scoreless tie in the second inning with a homerun off L.A. Dodgers pitcher YU DARVISH.
Unfortunately, he ruined the whole thing by making an offensive gesture after returning to the dugout. He pulled his eyes back to make them look slanted. He also mouthed the word 'Chinito,' which means "little Chinese boy."
Darvish, is Asian, but not Chinese. He's is of Iranian and Japanese descent. Gurriel is a rookie in the Major Leagues . . . but he's 33. And frankly, a 8 yr old should know better
Gurriel apologized after the game . . . admitting that it was, quote, "an offensive gesture that was indefensible."
He admitted that he knew Chinito was offensive to Asians, because he spent a year playing in Japan in 2014. He also said he, quote, "admires and respects" Darvish, but he just got amped after the homerun because he's never had a lot of success against him.
Darvish took the high road, and said that it didn't really bother him. He added, quote, "What he [did] isn't right, but I believe we should put our effort into learning rather than to accuse him . . .
Major League Baseball slapped Gurriel with a five-game suspension . . . but fortunately for him and the Astros, they're NOT taking him out of the World Series. He'll serve it at the start of next season.
Gurriel hit a three-run home run off Clayton Kershaw in Game Five last night . . . and he managed to celebrate without making any offensive gestures.