Britton embraces Dominican roots
Zack Britton can’t help but smile recalling the strange looks he got during Players’ Weekend in 2018, back when the public finally caught on to his family’s secret. There it was, splayed on the back of the jersey that, for most other major leaguers, was a nickname or a catchphrase. It was MLB’s idea of letting loose, but for Britton it was his chance to come out as a Latino – sort of.
The word “Anglada” is what Britton wore for three glorious days last summer, prompting him to answer the flurry of questions.
That is his maternal grandmother’s maiden name. That side of the family is from the Dominican Republic, which means, yes, Britton is half-Dominican. No, he doesn’t speak Spanish, but he is nevertheless the ultimate globalist.
“I know it sounds crazy to people when I tell them I’m part-Dominican. I’m proud of it,” Britton said. “My one regret is that I didn’t learn Spanish growing up. I say to my mother now, ‘Why didn’t you force me to learn?’ The truth is I appreciate her heritage – and mine – more now than when I was a kid.”
The Yankees’ reliever is the first to admit he hardly looks like most other Dominicans in the majors. He’s a blue-eyed Caucasian who bears the physical traits of his half-German, half-Irish father. Britton’s mother’s side of the family is brown – “they all sort of look like Gleyber (Torres)” – which leaves him with no explanation for the genetic imbalance.
But appearances aside, Britton knows he has a unique place in the demographic make-up of the Yankees clubhouse. It’s like having a dual passport: American by birth, Latino by bloodline. The team’s Spanish-speakers welcome Britton as one of their own, although needle him endlessly about his lack of fluency in the mother tongue.
“When they’re speaking, they always stop and ask me, ‘Did you understand this? Did you understand?” “ Britton says. “And for the most part I do, I just don’t speak it very well. Those guys keep telling me, ‘You gotta learn!’”
The sense of community extends beyond the clubhouse too. Britton was given the chance to play for the Dominican during the World Baseball Classic in 2013. Ironically, it wasn’t a teammate among the Orioles, his former club, who reached out. Instead it was David Ortiz, an American League East rival but also the Dominican’s No. 1 ambassador and recruiter for the WBC.
Once Ortiz had heard that Britton had island roots, he began a full-throated pitch to honor the Anglada name.
“Papi said, ‘You have to do it. It’ll be great,’” Britton recalled. “My answer was, ‘Look at me, I’m a white guy. Who’s going to take me seriously?’”
Ortiz turned serious in his response.
“Having you on our team would show (Dominicans) welcome all races, we don’t all look alike,” Britton said, recalling Ortiz’ words. It was a powerful argument and Britton nearly accepted the invite. Ultimately he chose to sit out the tournament in deference to his wife, who was pregnant at the time. The lefthander didn’t want to leave her side before she gave birth.
But the lesson has stayed with Britton ever since, deepening his interest in his mother’s past. She was working at a manufacturing facility in Los Angeles in the ‘80s and hit it off with an electrical contractor in the same plant.
Eventually they married and had three boys – Zack was the youngest. He can recall the times the family would visit his mother’s former neighborhood in a Latino pocket of Los Angeles.
“We’d go visit her mother, my grandmother. These three little white kids showing up in a rough neighborhood,” Britton said with a laugh. “But it was great; we’d play in the parking lot or the apartment complex, eat Dominican food all day.
“I’ll never forget those times, although I wish I’d gotten to know my grandmother better before she died of ovarian cancer.”
It’s only through conversations with his cousins that Britton learned of his grandmother’s journey to the U.S. – a harried escape just before the Dominican revolution in 1965. Her husband, Britton’s grandfather, stayed to fight in the uprising and was killed in action.
Britton hopes to someday retrace the story of both of their lives, which would begin with a trip to the island.
The pitcher has yet to visit the country, or specifically the family’s roots in San Pedro de Macoris, which he admits, “is something I really want to do. I want to be able to teach my own kids about the heritage from the other side of the family.”
For now, it’s enough for Britton to celebrate his Latino ties in the daily interactions with the Yankees. He’s practicing Spanish with Torres and Gio Urshela, who speak the language elegantly and whose accents are easy to decipher.
Similar progress is being made with the Dominican-born Gary Sánchez, although Britton makes sure to say, “during the game, on the mound, we speak English to each other. We don’t want any misunderstandings.”
Britton follows one other hard, fast rule, as well: forget about Spanish with Aroldis Chapman. A 50 percent Dominican, he said, has zero chance with the reliever’s Cuban accent.
“No shot with Chappy,” Britton said. “I’ve given up on that.”
Featured Image: Michael Owens / Getty Images Sport