Oakland A’s star Dave Stewart has come to the defense of his former manager, Tony La Russa, in the wake of recent allegations.
It has not been a good few days for Tony La Russa. The former Oakland A’s manager has not only been soundly questioned as the new manager of the White Sox, but had his latest DUI incident come to light. In addition, there have been some questions about whether or not players would want to play for La Russa these days, with there being some insinuations of racism.
However, at least one former player is on his side. Dave Stewart has taken to Twitter to defend La Russa from those allegations of racism.
I’ve known Tony now since 1986. He is one of my best friends. I’ve not seen any signs that the man is racist. https://t.co/t1msv005bD
— Dave “Smoke” Stewart (@Dsmoke34) November 11, 2020
This allegation came into being due to a tweet to Marcus Stroman. A question from a fan regarding how much it would take for Stroman to pitch for the White Sox included the statement that La Russa is a racist, prompting this speculation.
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As it was, there were questions as to how La Russa would be able to relate to players in the current social and political climate. Back in 2016, he had questioned the sincerity of Colin Kapernick’s protest by kneeling during the National Anthem, a stance that he has since changed his mind about. La Russa had also made similar comments when then Orioles outfielder Adam Jones questioned the lack of protests in baseball.
Perhaps those statements are where these allegations of racism stem from. His past comments could be taken in such a light if one wanted, but he has also changed his mind. He now understands why players had wanted to bring these concerns to the national stage.
Those concerns do not necessarily mean that there are any racial overtones to La Russa’s original comments. And people change their stances when presented with new information, as he has over the years. But that has been enough for La Russa to be hit with this label.
Fortunately for Tony La Russa, Dave Stewart still has his back. But that may not be enough to shake these latest allegations.