This belongs in Politics, but I heard that stuff about Jason Heyward his first two years from the Cubs too from a few random Cubs fans I'd bump into. Seems like a struggling black player gets that tag a lot easier than a struggling white one does.
I'm not sure what's going on with Fowler this year, but there was definitely no reason to question his energy, effort, and hustle during his time with the Cubs, much less his first season in St. Louis. I have a hard time believing he just all of a sudden decided this was the year he was going to quit playing all out.