Washington Nationals pitcher Cade Cavalli issued an apology on Wednesday, July 1, 2026, after shouting a controversial phrase at Boston Red Sox first baseman Willson Contreras during an 8-1 victory in Boston.
The incident occurred in the fourth inning when Cavalli struck out Contreras looking and told him to "sit down, boy."
This sparked a benches-clearing scrum.
The right-hander gave up one hit and struck out a career-high 13 batters over seven innings, snapping Boston's five-game winning streak, according to the Associated Press.
The confrontation led to the ejections of Contreras, Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy, Boston outfielder Nate Eaton, and Washington pitcher Miles Mikolas.
Contreras had yelled back at Cavalli, charged the mound, and attempted to throw his helmet over a group of players before being restrained.
"I'm extremely torn up about the way that things were perceived," said Cavalli, addressing the public reaction to his word choice.
"Obviously, there was no ill intention behind that."
The term carries a racist history in the United States, though Contreras demurred when asked postgame if he felt the comment had a racial component.
Cavalli noted that he could not sleep because of how his words might impact young fans.
"My teammates know me, my family knows me, this organization knows me," Cavalli stated. "I couldn't sleep because of it.
It hurt my heart, knowing that, if there's a 13-year-old Black kid in D. C.
that sees that — that looked up to me and thinks that he perceived it in a way that wasn't intended the way that it came out, and then he's not looking up to me anymore — that hurts my heart."
The pitcher stated that competitive environments sometimes obscure the weight of certain language until a broader audience reacts.
He noted that he understands the history behind the word.
"There's a history behind that word, and that's just something that as a competitor, like in football or basketball, playing whiffle ball with my brother, you don't understand it," Cavalli explained.
"And then it gets perceived in a way that was not my intention, and then you learn from that.
It'll never happen again."
Cavalli explained that he did not realize the scale of the social media backlash until returning to his hotel room.
He expressed distress over the impact the situation had on his family.
"I looked at my phone, and I saw what people were saying about me. Saw how torn up my wife was.
It hurt my heart," Cavalli recalled. "I couldn't believe it.
I really couldn't. Because I know that people know me, and they know my character, and that's not me.
So, it was hard. I truly didn't sleep last night."
The Nationals pitcher has not directly spoken with the Red Sox first baseman following the game. However, he expressed hope that his public explanation would clarify the situation.
