The New York Yankees are facing backlash after drafting shortstop Core Jackson, a player whose past includes drawing a swastika on the dorm room door of a Jewish student when he was a 17-year-old freshman at the University of Nebraska, The Athletic revealed Wednesday.

The 2021 incident, which Jackson now describes as the lowest point of his life, occurred while he was “blackout drunk.” According to reports, he broke down in tears the following day when told what he had done.

The University of Nebraska sanctioned Jackson with fines, community service, and online sensitivity training. He was not arrested, and his baseball career continued uninterrupted.

Jackson’s disciplinary record extended beyond the swastika incident. In September 2024, while playing for the University of Utah, he was charged with DUI. The case was reduced to misdemeanor impaired driving, with Jackson ordered to complete substance abuse training, community service, and pay fines.

The Yankees were fully aware of Jackson’s past before selecting him in the 2025 MLB Draft. His agent had instructed him to disclose the swastika incident to all 30 Major League clubs during the draft process.

Damon Oppenheimer, the Yankees’ amateur scouting director, defended the decision: “We were looking for accountability. I think [Jackson’s] actions have shown his remorse. He’s acknowledged it. He’s taken the right steps to learn and understand what he’s done.”

Oppenheimer said the team performed more “due diligence” on Jackson than on any player in his 23-year career. The pick was also backed by Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner and president Randy Levine, who is Jewish, along with other Jewish members of the organization’s leadership.

Jackson signed with New York for $147,500—well below the $411,100 slot value for the 164th overall pick. Scouts said his performance on the field—a career .363/.455/.577 hitter at Utah and two-time first-team all-conference honoree—would likely have placed him much higher in the draft if not for his past actions.

Jackson’s agent, initially blindsided by the revelation, considered cutting ties before consulting with Elliot Steinmetz, head men’s basketball coach at Yeshiva University. After a personal call with Jackson, Steinmetz described him as “the nicest, sweetest kid in the world—[but] dumb as rocks when it came to these kinds of issues.”

Jackson later undertook a five-week educational course with a Yeshiva University graduate student, aimed at teaching him about Jewish history and antisemitism. The instructor said Jackson was “attentive and engaged.”

Raised in a Christian household in rural Ontario, Jackson admitted he had grown up with almost no exposure to Jews or Jewish history. “That doesn’t excuse what I did,” he told The Athletic. “But it shows how much I had to learn.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)