Red Sox First-Round Draft Pick Tried to Hide His Yankees Fandom
University of Virginia catcher Kyle Teel saw his Major League Baseball dreams realized in the first round of Sunday’s MLB draft, but with a catch: Going to the bitter rival of the team he grew up rooting for.
Teel was drafted 14th overall by the Red Sox, and it didn’t take long for the internet to dig up an old Instagram post that features Teel wearing a Yankees jersey with the caption “Let’s go Yankees." Perhaps his childhood allegiances shouldn’t be a surprise given that Teel originally hails from New Jersey, but that didn’t stop Yankees fans from having fun with the announcement.
Almost as good when Ian Clarkin in his pre-draft video said he “cannot stand the Yankees” that played right after getting drafted by them. https://t.co/gV5bCHr2wh
— Will Privette (@Thrill21) July 10, 2023
Love to see it https://t.co/mvWNNRO7MD
— FrankInGeneral ????⛈️ (@frankingeneral) July 10, 2023
Red Sox first round pick Kyle Teel grew up a HUGE Yankee fan pic.twitter.com/2H4LnCLTlT
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) July 10, 2023
Of course, Red Sox fans were quick to point out that old photos of Aaron Judge showed the current Yankees slugger wearing Boston gear before he was drafted in 2013.
https://t.co/sD51KyteRu pic.twitter.com/WHyzGMn59b
— Thomas Carrieri (@Thomas_Carrieri) July 10, 2023
Teel has since taken down the Instagram post featuring him in Yankees gear, but the internet never forgets. If he makes it up to the big leagues one day, expect that picture to resurface time and time again. Still, Teel doesn’t seem concerned about any potential conflict between his former favorite team and his new organization.
“I bleed red now,” Teel said, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com.