Jones: Standing ovation at Fenway Park 'caught me off guard'

When Adam Jones stepped to the plate for his first appearance Tuesday at Fenway Park, the Baltimore Orioles outfielder was caught by surprise, but not because of a pitch from opposing starter Chris Sale. Instead, it was due to an unlikely gesture from the fans in attendance, most of whom were rooting for the hometown Red Sox.

Jones was welcomed with a standing ovation from the 32,932 people filling Fenway's seats, while Mookie Betts also showed his appreciation from right field.

Related: Fenway crowd gives Adam Jones lengthy standing ovation

A day prior, Jones had been the victim of racial slurs during the series opener, which included one fan throwing a bag of peanuts at the 31-year-old. After an obviously upset Jones stood up for himself and called the racist fans "pathetic," the baseball community stood by him in support, which included Betts asking Fenway Park to "literally stand" during Tuesday's contest.

"It was much appreciated," Jones said after the Red Sox defeated the Orioles 5-2, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today. "Being on the road, I’ve never got any ovations or anything like that. So it just caught me off guard a little bit. I was like, 'Oh, OK, this is something different.'"

The Red Sox had already issued an apology after Monday's incident, while the mayor of Boston, Marty Walsh, proclaimed: "We are better than this."

Jones, who is one of 62 African-American players actively playing in the big leagues, not only appeared surprised by the gesture from the Fenway faithful, but also offered his appreciation for their support in the face of a difficult situation.

"It’s pretty awesome," Jones explained. "These kinds of things are bigger than the game. This is a game. This isn’t life and death. There’s bigger issues in the world than a baseball game."