Will Middlebrooks Raises $70,000 After Childhood Friend Jonathan Price Killed By Police

BOSTON (CBS) – Former Red Sox infielder Will Middlebrooks has raised more than $70,000 for the family of childhood friend Jonathan Price after he was shot and killed by a police officer in North Texas.

The Texas Rangers say Price, a Black man, was shot and killed by Wolfe City Police Officer Shaun David Lucas during an incident at a gas station.

Family members said Price intervened in a fight between a couple. Lucas encountered Price, who the Rangers said resisted arrest in a non-threatening posture and walked away. Lucas allegedly tried to subdue Price with a stun gun, then fatally shot him.

Lucas was arrested Monday night and had bond set at $1 million for Price's death. The officer was released on bond and the circumstances surrounding his deadly use of force remains under investigation.

Middlebrooks, who won a World Series with the Red Sox in 2013, was childhood friends with Price.

"What's really sickening is that he was doing the right thing," Middlebrooks tweeted. "He saw a man putting his hands on a woman and stepped in to stop the altercation. The man then fought him... then the police shot him. He was unarmed. I'm heartbroken."

Middlebrooks, who is now a CBS Sports baseball analyst, created a fundraising page to help pay for Price's memorial and funeral. The page raised over $50,000 in less than 24 hours and has climbed past $70,000 as of Tuesday morning.