Dodgers' Adrian Gonzalez: Refusal to Stay at Donald Trump's Chicago Hotel a Private, Personal Matter

CHICAGO, IL — When Adrian Gonzalez refused to stay with his teammates at Donald Trump's Chicago hotel during games against the Cubs over the summer, the Los Angeles Dodgers' first baseman kept his decision quiet because he felt it was a private and personal matter.

But news of his refusal began making headlines Sunday night after the Dodgers split the first two games against the Cubs in the National League Championship Series. Now, Gonzalez — a Mexican American who was born in San Diego and speaks English and Spanish fluently — is receiving the attention he was hoping to avoid by not disclosing his decision, according to Los Angeles Times columnist Dylan Hernandez.

In May, the Dodgers were booked to stay at the Trump International Hotel and Tower during a series of games against the Cubs. Gonzalez, however, asked if the team could put him up at another hotel, and officials complied with his request.

When asked why he refused to stay at Trump's hotel, Gonzalez responded: "You can draw your own conclusions. They’re probably right."

More Cubs Coverage on Patch

• Cubs Game 3 Preview: Chicago Tries to Win Back NLCS Home-Field Advantage
• Cubs vs. Hornets' Frank Kaminsky: Who Won Their Twitter Trash Talk Tussle?
• Evanston Police Officer Featured in ESPN Video on Chicago Cubs Fans
• Naperville-Based Food Truck Fighting Cubs 'Curse' by Serving Goat

Trump, the Republican Party's presidential candidate, has made derogatory remarks about Mexican immigrants throughout his campaign. In some of his first comments after announcing his candidacy in June of 2015, Trump described Mexicans coming into this country as rapists, criminals and killers.

Trump also has been outspoken about limiting immigration to the United States, especially when it comes to the U.S.-Mexico border. He has proposed erecting a wall along that boundary if he becomes president.

News about the switch came out five months later after broadcasters for the Dodgers told a reporter about it during the first games of the NLCS at Wrigley Field, according to Hernandez's column. For this visit, the Dodgers stayed at a different hotel for reasons unrelated to Gonzalez's earlier request this season, the column reported.

"I wasn’t doing it for publicity, I wasn’t doing it for people to look at me or talk about me," Gonzalez told Hernandez concerning his decision. "That’s not who I am. I just have my own values and morals that I want to live by."

Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Adrian Gonzalez in 2013. (photo by Keith Allison | Flickr/Wikimedia Commons)

More via the Los Angeles Times

Like What You're Reading? Stay Patched In!

• Like our Crime page on Facebook
• Live Traffic and Transit Updates