Joe.My.God. LGBT News
Sports Illustrated reports:
Minor league pitcher Solomon Bates publicly came out as gay in an Instagram post on Tuesday, the same week that he was released by the Giants. He is the second minor league baseball player to publicly come out as gay, after David Denson did so in 2015.
Bates was an eighth-round pick out of USC in 2018, and has been in the Giants’ system ever since. He pitched in 23 games at Double A this season, posting a 4.02 ERA with 47 strikeouts in 40 1/3 innings.
“I haven’t been out as my complete self because I’ve been hiding myself,” Bates said, per Cyd Zeigler of Outsports. “I’m a masculine man who loves the sport of baseball, and now I want to open up doors for gay athletes like me.”
Read the full article. Bates says he’s been out to his teammates since 2019.
The love and support I’m getting after a weird day. Thank you everyone, you turned a sad day into a day full of strength. https://t.co/1jY524fAz0
— Solomon Bates (@SolomonBates_) August 9, 2022
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View this post on Instagram