TORONTO — For the past 11 days, the Blue Jays have disappointed and hurt the LGBTQ+ community. But Sean Addis, a gay man and longtime Blue Jays fan, sat in the 500 compartment at Rogers Center ahead of Friday’s Pride weekend celebrations.
“It didn’t feel like anyone was listening to the community,” said Addis, who expressed mixed feelings after watching his favorite team botch what seemed a simple decision involving Anthony Bass.
The 35-year-old reliever, with a 4.95 ERA, has spent the last 11 days with the squad after publicly supporting a hateful anti-LGBTQ+ video on his social media. But while driving from Ottawa to Toronto, Addis learned that Bass was scheduled to play on Friday of all days. It was a decision that general manager Ross Atkins would later classify as primarily a baseball action.
“I looked on the phone and saw he was DFA and I got emotional again, but not in a good way,” Addis said. “I thought really? This is the day you will do it. I do not know why. i will be honest with you I have a lot of conflicting (thoughts) because part of me asks, “Why now?” What changed in one day?”
As a matter of fact. If the Blue Jays profess to care about their LGBTQ+ fans and inclusion in general, they’ve done poorly with their mishandling of the bass situation over the past two weeks. For those 11 days, the Blue Jays kept Bass on the roster, instead of immediately discrediting him, they sent a message to their LGBTQ+ fans. And it wasn’t good.
The aide has had two opportunities to publicly apologize, but neither felt sincere or satisfactory to members of the LGBTQ+ community with whom The Athletic has spoken in the 24 hours following. (First of all, he kept calling them the “Pride community,” which is not the case.) On Thursday, Bass defended his “personal beliefs” with which the video in which he called for boycotting brands like Target and Budweiser because of their called for support for Pride initiatives, was consistent with. He only resigned the post because it was a “distraction,” he said.
Management, meanwhile, issued little more than a statement, which immediately afterwards distanced itself from the “feelings of individual players”. It wasn’t until Thursday, ten days later, that Atkins finally told reporters that he “regards Bass’s responsibilities as authentic” when he apologized to the GM, the manager and his teammates.
“I don’t feel like Anthony means any harm or that anyone feels like they’re not equal,” Atkins said Friday.
But after his comments on Thursday, it was clear that Bass still didn’t understand the damaging nature of his actions and words. His behavior also became a distraction for the team.
But if you thought this was the moment when the organization would finally make it clear that they strongly condemned his views, that they didn’t align with the culture of the team and that’s why he’s gone, then you thought wrong. Atkins stood at the goal-line with the net open to rake in some much-needed PR points and finally speak up for a community that had hurt her deeply over the past few weeks. He explained that adding Mitch White and naming Bass for the assignment is about “building the best team possible.”
“There are many variables involved in every decision, but the focus is on putting together the best possible team that we can put together,” he said, adding that the bass situation “has become a distraction” and that “a variable was in that decision.” ”
Blue Jays manager John Schneider answers questions about Anthony Bass. (Steve Russell/Toronto Star via Getty Images)
But again: why now? The club could have made a baseball decision 11 days ago when Bass was the weak link in the bullpen. He could have been appointed DFA at the time and certainly another substitute could have taken his place. Perhaps the Blue Jays were concerned about a complaint from the MLBPA. The club also clearly believed Bass when he said he would continue his education, but that backfired when his apology did more harm than good.
Major League Baseball is a business, and none of us are naïve about it. The Blue Jays were understood to have shopped in Bass – who in recent days has also expressed interest in leaving the organization where he felt he could no longer perform, according to a major league source. The team almost traded him this week. Now they have 10 days to do so. Otherwise he will be released and can sign somewhere else.
As I listened to Atkins discuss baseball decisions and variables, my thoughts kept returning to the members of the LGBTQ+ community — and their allies — who have felt betrayed and disappointed during this ordeal. I asked Atkins about the whole charade of keeping Bass on the team for 11 days and causing unnecessary damage to a community that was already under attack across North America, only to end up losing him.
“I wish we could take that back if that was the case,” Atkins said. “We definitely don’t want anyone to feel hurt. We focus on the environment. We care about this community, we care about our fans. And I deeply regret when people think that, because that was certainly not our intention. And these are very difficult decisions that involve many variables.”
I’ve spent the last day reaching out to Blue Jays fans who are members of the LGBTQ+ community. Initially, I was interested to hear how they felt about the Bass incident over the Pride weekend celebrations, especially considering he was supposed to catch the celebratory first pitch. It was an idea that Bass and Pride Toronto executive Sherwin Modeste approved of when they met earlier this week, but an idea that met with opposition from the community and would be booed by the crowd if implemented.
When I spoke to these LGBTQ+ fans about Bass’ actions and comments and the Blue Jays’ reaction, the emotions were described in words like exhausting, devastated and contradictory.
“It didn’t seem like enough,” said Angelo Persico, who said he had hoped the front office would release Bass immediately. “I feel like they’re really just protecting this player who was probably – I understand it’s a business – but probably one of the worst players in the squad all season. And I don’t know why they’re so protective of him.”
There were also mixed feelings on the question of supporting the club during the weekend’s celebrations. Stephanie Malek told me that she has long had disagreements about her fan base. She remembers when former players Yunel Escobar and Kevin Pillar were involved in homophobic incidents. (Both players were banned by the team for several games; Bass received no internal discipline.) And while Malek understood why many people support the club’s Pride celebrations, she couldn’t.
“Every person celebrates their own identity and pride, for lack of a better word, in the way they choose,” Malek said. “I wouldn’t blame anyone looking for a place where they feel welcome. And also in this case you should be with many other queer people who are also Jays fans. But all I know is that my ticket money this weekend will show that it’s a symbol of support for the club and I don’t really want to give them my money, especially for this initiative, until they show it’s something that going beyond the fair is a marketing ploy to place their logo next to a rainbow.”
However, Nicole Burk was present at Friday night’s game despite conflicting feelings.
“The team have spent the last few years creating an event that aims to be a safe space for the LGBTQ+ community and Bass’ comments have definitely shattered that sense of safety and celebration. Regardless, the community deserves to be celebrated,” Burk shared in an email.
Justin Havelock was also present on Friday. He said while he’s heard from other members of the LGBTQ+ community who have been feeling torn about their fandom lately, Havelock’s view is that “this team is so much bigger than Anthony Bass and even the front office .”
“As a kid, I could never have imagined going to a Blue Jays game and seeing people walking around in drag-and-drag acts and Pride flags everywhere,” he said. “I couldn’t have imagined that as a child. It’s definitely something I want to celebrate and enjoy.”
Bass took a first step and met up with a member of Pride Toronto. Despite the pain felt by the community, a few people mentioned that they still hoped Bass could keep learning and continuing his outreach with the LGBTQ+ community.
“I’m disappointed that Bass wasn’t able to use this as an opportunity to grow and learn to become an ally,” Havelock said. “We need to make sure there is a way forward for people who have made mistakes in the past or held negative beliefs but are willing to make a commitment to change. However, people have to be willing to make an effort and meet us halfway.”
Meanwhile, while sitting in the 500 division, Addis said he was told as a 13-year-old that “F- has no place in sports.” Shortly thereafter, he gave up baseball, a sport he loved, and only caught back to it as an adult. As he gazed at a Rogers Center adorned with rainbow flags on Friday, he thought of his younger self.
“I have the right to be here and to be with the people I want to be and I think that’s important,” he said. “I want to be honest with you. They must continue to be held accountable. That won’t go away. That’s not done. … This is a far deeper problem within the organization.”
(Top Photo: Mark Blinch/Getty Images)