Why Hector Velazquez Won’t Make Trip With Red Sox To Visit White House

The Boston Red Sox are set to visit the White House on May 9 to be honored for their 2018 World Series championship victory.

J.D. Martinez already has confirmed he will go, while Mookie Betts and Jackie Bradley Jr. both have elected to skip the visit. And now Hector Velazquez is speaking out, saying he too will not go to the White House.

“I made the choice not to go because, as we know, the president has said a lot of stuff about Mexico,” Velazquez said through a translator, via MassLive.com. “And I have a lot of people in Mexico that are fans of me, that follow me. And I’m from there. So I would rather not offend anyone over there.”

Manager Alex Cora initially said he was going, but since has said he has yet to decide.

Boston’s trip to Washington D.C. originally was scheduled for Feb. 15, but the team decided to postpone it due to the government shutdown until an off-day in May after a three-game set with the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards concludes.