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Tyler Dunnington, Former Saint Louis Cardinals Draftee, Says He Quit Baseball Due To Homophobia

By Aaron Homer
Published on: 06:19 PST, Mar 18, 2016

Tyler Dunnington, a baseball player selected for the Saint Louis Cardinals in the 28th round of the 2014 MLB draft, revealed that he left the popular sport because of homophobic statements from team mates and coaches, the Guardian is reporting.

Dunnington said that during a locker room conversation, a teammate had mentioned he had a gay brother. The two teammates questioned how anyone could be friends with gay people, and then digressed into talking about ways to kill gays. He was a pitcher at Division II Colorado Mesa College at the time.

He also added that a coach had mentioned that homosexuals were killed in Wyoming, a reference to Matthew Shepard who was brutally murdered in Laramie, Wyoming, in 1998 by two young men who had tricked the gay student into taking a ride with them before tying him to a fence, beating him to death and burning his corpse, according to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

Dunnington moved to the Golf Coast league and spent time as a Cardinal’s rookie level affiliate with a team in Jupiter, Florida.

He said the homophobic atmosphere had made him uncomfortable about revealing his sexual leanings, leading him to retire about 12 months ago. Dunnington, who was a 3-2 with a 3.41 ERA in 18 games, left the game after a solid first season. He did not come back for spring training in 2015. He is now trying to get a job in the front office and make a change from there.

“I experienced both coaches and players make remarks on killing gay people during my time in baseball, and each comment felt like a knife to my heart. I was miserable in a sport that used to give me life, and ultimately I decided I needed to hang up my cleats for my own sanity. I not only wanted to share my story, but also apologize for not using the stage I had to help change the game. Quitting isn’t the way to handle adversity, and I admire the other athletes acting as trailblazers.”

For their part, the Cardinals management is taking the homophobic allegations seriously. General Manager John Mozeliak said he was disappointed that the 24-year-old player had resigned over his unsavory experiences, adding that the hope of management was for every player, staff member, and employee was to be treated equally and fairly. Mozeliak said it was highly regrettable when a gay baseball player could not feel safe around his teammates.

“Given the nature of these allegations I will certainly look into this further as well as speak with Billy Bean of the Commissioner’s office for further assistance on this matter…. We will take this very seriously,” Mozeliak assured.

In 2013, Major League Baseball set up a policy barring players from discriminating against players based on their sexual preferences. Billy Bean, former big leaguer who revealed he was gay in 1999, has said he will meet to discuss the issues at length with Dunnington and fully grasp what he was going through.

He revealed there were no preceding guidelines about investigating the case of the 24-year-old pitcher.

“This is something that reminds me I have a lot of work to do, and it’s a challenge,” he said.

Minor League Baseball President and CEO Pat O’Conner said Minor League Baseball and Major League Baseball were meant to encourage an environment that players could thrive and succeed without fears about their sexual orientation. He applauded Dunnington for his bravery and strength for coming out to live his truth, wishing him the best in his strides to still be part of the professional game.

[Image via Shutterstock/Carlos E. Santa Maria]

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