Major League Baseball pitcher Anthony Bass will reportedly catch the ceremonial first pitch for the Toronto Blue Jays when they kick off their weekend of gay pride celebrations, according to multiple sources.
Bass recently apologized after sharing content on social media that advocated for Christians to boycott Target, Bud Light, and other entities pushing pro-LGBT ideology.
The player said that his post had hurt the “pride community,” which he said includes some of his friends and relatives. He said that he had also apologized to his teammates and that he is “using the Blue Jays’ resources to better educate” himself.
“Plan is for Anthony Bass to catch the first pitch at the #BlueJays game tomorrow on Pride Weekend[.] Another player likely to catch first pitch Saturday, details TBD,” said Ben Nicholson-Smith, a reporter for Sportsnet in Canada.
Bass reportedly met with the executive director of Toronto’s Pride organization for a one-hour conversation and said that he is “in a better place moving forward” after speaking to the activist.
“He was glad to see that I apologized,” Bass said. “He just informed me about the Pride community and a lot of the good things that they’re doing to spread awareness and make people feel comfortable with their decisions.”
The MLB published a lengthier set of explanations from Bass, recapping his newly found understanding of wrongdoing the day before his June 9, 2023, penance.
“What I’ve learned through this process, especially representing an organization in the Toronto Blue Jays and a community, is that my focus from the get-go should have been doing my job and being accepting of everyone’s decisions and views in life,” Bass told reporters.
“Through this process, I’ve learned that. Moving forward, I will definitely know better than to post my personal beliefs on my social media platforms,” Bass added. However, the pitcher said he still stands by his beliefs.
“I stand by my personal beliefs … and everyone is entitled to their personal beliefs, right? Also, I mean no harm towards any groups of people. I felt like taking that down a second time was the right thing to do and not be a distraction to this team. Our job is to win baseball games and that’s my focus,” he clarified.
Bass will take part in the ceremony as the Toronto Blue Jays celebrate their first Pride night of the year with a rainbow flag-themed jersey, given to the first 15,000 willing attendees.
The team also appears to be promoting a team of drag queens for their weekend celebration as well.
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