Red Sox scrap 'racially insensitive' David Ortiz bobbleheads

— -- Boston Red Sox fans who attend Tuesday night's game against the  New York Yankees will no longer receive David Ortiz bobbleheads.

The team promised to distribute Ortiz bobbleheads to the first 15,000 fans entering Fenway Park before Boston's game against the Yankees, but Red Sox president Sam Kennedy said he elected to postpone the promotion after doing a quality check.

"I thought the bobbleheads were an inaccurate portrayal of David," Kennedy said. "To go further, I thought the facial features were racially insensitive."

Ortiz said he agreed with the Red Sox's decision.

"That's supposed to be me?" Ortiz told The Boston Globe after looking at a photo of the bobblehead.

The bobbleheads were made by Washington-based promotions company BDA Inc.

"We value our decades-long relationship with the Red Sox organization and its decision to postpone Tuesday's David Ortiz bobblehead giveaway," the company said in a statement. "We're currently working closely with the Red Sox to ensure the team and its fans receive a quality product." 

Kennedy said the team will now give out a new-look Ortiz bobblehead at a future date to anyone who has a ticket to Tuesday night's game. In a statement, the Red Sox said they will announce details after the game.

The bobbleheads were more highly anticipated because Ortiz is retiring at the end of the season.

Bobblehead snafus aren't unheard of. Last year, the Washington Nationals shelved a Jayson Werth bobblehead that awkwardly had his mouth wide open. Five months later, the team gave a replacement bobblehead to fans with vouchers from the original game.

In 2006, the Baltimore Orioles canceled a Brian Roberts bobblehead promotion after his face appeared too dark.

One of the most awkward bobblehead giveaways came in August 2012, when the Philadelphia Phillies gave away 45,000 Hunter Pence bobbleheads right after they had traded him to the San Francisco Giants.