MLB star Jarren Duran was caught on a hot mic calling a heckler an anti-gay slur on Sunday … and after receiving backlash for hours, the outfielder issued a mea culpa, apologizing for his “truly horrific” language.
The 27-year-old Red Sox player let the f-word fly when he stepped into the batter’s box during the sixth inning of Boston’s blowout loss to Houston.
Bạn có thể nghe âm thanh từ chương trình phát sóng trò chơi … khi một người đàn ông trên khán đài Fenway Park la ó anh ấy về việc cần “một cây vợt tennis” khi đang chơi — anh ấy đáp trả bằng cách gọi anh chàng đó là “f***ing f****t”.
Social media users were quick to pick up the clip from the contest and lay into him for the offensive comment — and after it went viral, Duran said he was sorry.
“During tonight’s game,” he wrote in a statement, “I used a truly horrific word when responding to a fan. I feel awful knowing how many people I offended and disappointed.”
“I apologize to the entire Red Sox organization, but more importantly to the entire LGBTQ community. Our young fans are supposed to be able to look up to me as a role model, but tonight I fell far short of that responsibility. I will use this opportunity to educate myself and my teammates and to grow as a person.”
Duran — who was named All-Star Game MVP in July — had actually received the Heart and Hustle Award from Boston earlier in the day to recognize him for embodying the “values, spirit and traditions” of baseball.
For their part, the Red Sox said in a statement of their own that they did address the matter with Duran following the game.
“Chúng tôi xin lỗi người hâm mộ của Jarren, đặc biệt là cộng đồng LGBTQ”, họ nói thêm. “Chúng tôi nỗ lực trở thành một tổ chức chào đón tất cả người hâm mộ đến Fenway Park và chúng tôi sẽ tiếp tục giáo dục nhân viên, cầu thủ, huấn luyện viên và đội ngũ nhân viên của mình về tầm quan trọng của sự hòa nhập”.
No word yet if Duran will face punishment over it all.
