MLB
What did the Red Sox say about Matt Dermody’s homophobic tweet?
Left-handed starter Matt Dermody caused a stir with a homophobic tweet posted in 2021, and the Red Sox were asked about their stance on the issue.
Matt Dermody spent exactly one game in the Show, with Boston bringing him up from Triple-A Worcester for a single game and DFA-ing him after the 10-3 loss to the Cleveland Guardians.
The 32-year-old has good control and works as a low-strikeout ground-ball specialist. He threw 4.0 innings, giving up three earned runs on four hits and a walk. But that isn’t why he is in the news.
Back in 2021, Dermody was playing in Japan for the Saitama Seibu Lions when he tweeted out a homophobic message, now deleted, that read:
“#PrideMonth. Homosexuals will not inherit the kingdom of God. They will go to hell. This is not my opinion, but the #Truth. Read 1 Corinthians 6:9. May we all examine our hearts, ask Jesus to forgive us and repent of all our sins. I love you all in Christ Jesus!”
The biblical verse referenced reads “Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither the immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor sexual perverts”.
The tweet and subsequent pairing of homosexuality with perversion and immorality are immensely insulting and harmful, and the tweet was removed by Dermody in a short amount of time. The Lions issued a team apology and Dermody himself issued an awkward half-apology of sorts, saying, “I do regret the tweet in the sense that it came out hurtful and it hurt a lot of people. That’s the last thing I want to do is hurt people. A lot of people think that I’m against a certain group of people or whatnot. But I’m for everybody making it to heaven.”
The Red Sox later signed Dermody and put him in their system, apparently unaware of the tweet, and have now been asked to address the situation.
Boston’s Chief Baseball Officer, Chaim Bloom said, “It’s important to us that he had taken the tweet down and important why he had done it. I talked to him personally about that and what he told me was that it really came down to two things. One, he didn’t realize that his words would be hurtful and he didn’t want to hurt anybody and when he realized that they were, he took (the post) down.
“He also understood that it’s not the right use of his platform. He knows he made a mistake tweeting that. That’s why he took it down. Obviously, that doesn’t mean that we endorse anything he said or anything he believes. But the fact of the matter is, if we’re committed to creating an (inclusive) environment, it’s not right for us to police what people believe.
“We do need to expect that everybody here is going to be committed to creating an inclusive and safe environment and so understanding why he had taken the tweet down and that his words were hurtful, and knowing that he doesn’t want to hurt anybody and that he believes in a safe environment, was important here.”
Alex Cora was asked about it as well following the Guardians game and said, “Obviously, not too many people agree with the tweet of Matt’s,” Cora said. “I’m not here to tell him what to say or to do. But one thing for sure, when you put this uniform on, what we want is for people to be inclusive.
“I think the clubhouse is a reflection of the world. We’ve got people from different race, different beliefs, not just religious beliefs but also politics.”
Dermody’s designation means that the Sox have a week to decide whether to trade him or put him on waivers. If the latter happens, he will be back to testing out the minor league free agency waters.