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Former MLB Gold Glove outfielder Kole Calhoun ripped into the Trump administration on Monday following the Border Patrol-involved shooting in Minnesota over the weekend.
Calhoun wrote a lengthy statement on his Instagram Stories, beginning with his claim that Alex Pretti — the Minneapolis man who was shot and killed Saturday — had been “outright murdered.”
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Los Angeles Angels right fielder Kole Calhoun (56) runs the bases after hitting a solo home run against the Boston Red Sox in the eighth inning at Fenway Park on August 11, 2019. (Brian Fluharty/USA TODAY Sports)
He then recalled his years playing for the Los Angeles Angels, Arizona Diamondbacks, Texas Rangers and Cleveland Guardians and how he played with teammates from different backgrounds and was thrilled to see some of them able to send money back to their home countries to help their families buy a home.
The 38-year-old Arizona native said he used to sit in the middle of political discourse and for the most part tried to stay out of the conversation. But that was until the latest shooting involving federal agents.
“The United States we live in right now couldn’t be more divided, but this is a turning point,” he said. “The images and videos from Minnesota are alarming on all fronts because what this country was built on and our core values as a society are under attack. There is (a) right way to do things and a wrong way and the tactics on display for the world to see, those designed to create fear and intimidate recruits to this administration, are the wrong way.
Texas Rangers outfielder Kole Calhoun (56) throws the ball in the infield during the sixth inning against the Seattle Mariners at Globe Life Field on July 16, 2022. (Jerome Miron/USA TODAY Sports)
BRUCE PEARL RIPS TIM WALZ, DEMOCRATS AFTER BORDER PATROL INVOLVED SHOOTING IN MINNESOTA
“What this administration is doing on immigration is blatantly racist, targeting people based on the color of their skin or the sound of their last name. There is a much more civilized way to do this, which is to work with state officials opposed to imposing the administration’s will on a state whose citizens have stood up for their neighbors and said it’s wrong!
“I’ve stayed silent because it’s easy. But silence is a privilege and silence is complicit. Standing up and speaking out for what you believe in takes courage. I don’t care what side you’re on or who you voted for, it’s wrong. It’s wrong and it infringes on the fundamental freedoms we have in the country. Wake up! Speak out!”
Following the shooting, Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino, the face of the Trump administration’s campaign to arrest and deport criminal illegal immigrants, will leave Minnesota, along with some border agents, amid violent, and sometimes deadly, clashes between federal authorities and anti-ICE agitators.
Bovino and an unspecified number of U.S. Border Patrol agents will leave the state as early as Tuesday, multiple federal sources told PK Press Club.
An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent raises his finger moments after arresting a man during an immigration raid, days after an ICE agent killed Renee Nicole Good, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, January 18, 2026. (Léa Millis/Reuters)
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President Donald Trump said earlier Monday that he had spoken with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey about the shooting.
