Why is Addison Russell hated so much? Angry Internet says 'you're still the villain' after Kiwoom Heroes signing
"Addison Russell went from a Cubs legend to a complete POS and now this. what a downfall," wrote Jason Patt on Twitter, responding to rumors of the baseball player signing a one-year contract with the Kiwoom Heroes of the KBO league of South Korea. The news was soon confirmed by multiple outlets and comes as a milestone for Russell who was non-tendered by the Chicago Cubs, following his 40-game suspension on accounts of domestic violence.
And in the wake of this shocking comeback, Patt isn't the only one taking to social media to slam the player for being a "villain" after his ex-wife Melisa Reidy-Russell divorced him in 2018 for physical and mental abuse. The 26-year-old Russell played with the Cubs from 2014 to 2019. His fall from grace happened just as abruptly as his shot to fame. Back in June 2017, Melisa's post on Instagram implied marital woes, and soon, a friend of hers commented "Hateful is cheating on your wife, mentally and physically abusing her,” under the same post. In two weeks, Melisa filed for divorce, seeking full custody of the couple's then one-year-old son, along with child and spousal support.
The Major League Baseball's (MLB) very open-ended investigation implied there wasn't enough evidence to suspend Russell under their domestic-violence policy, but his marriage to Melisa was finally absolved in 2018. Shortly after which Melisa posted about how Russell laid his hands on her on a blog linked to her Instagram. "The first time I was physically mistreated by my spouse, I was in shock," Melisa wrote. "I couldn’t wrap my head around what just happened, [...] Why did he get so angry? What did I do for him to want to put his hands on me?"
Soon, MLB put Russell on "paid administrative leave" and began investigating the new allegations. Two weeks later, in October, arrived Russell's 40-game suspension which he did not appeal. So with him stepping into the KBO, avid followers were left in more than a bit of shock. "Reminder that Addison Russell can go f**k himself. Hope he fails miserably," reacted a Twitter user to the confirmed signing.
Another quipped: "Addison Russell be like 'I’m signing with the Heroes' yeah dude you’re still a villain." Resonating the same, a user wrote: "Interesting the 'Heroes' signed Addison Russell. He should not be considered a hero in any sense of the word." another user remarked: "Addison Russell is going be playing before all the MLB players and man that just adds to the weirdness of 2020." A user simply asked: "What KBO team is Addison Russell signing with so we can hate on that team?"