Boston Red Sox pitcher Matt Darmody is making his first start on Thursday night. But before he could do that, his team had to address a tweet he posted during Pride Month almost two years ago.
In 2021, while pitching in Japan, Darmody posted a tweet calling homosexuality a sin.
“#PrideMonth. Homosexuals will not inherit the kingdom of God. They will go to hell. That 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 for our sins. I love you all in Christ Jesus!”
Here is the tweet by Lions pitcher Matt Dermody that has now been deleted. Would like to see an apology from him, too. @lions_official @NPB_Reddit @npb @JCoskrey pic.twitter.com/WPfaz7ZaTi
— Big in Japan (@nihonbig) June 27, 2021
Darmody deleted the tweet soon after posting it.
On Thursday, Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom addressed Darmody’s tweet and the team’s approach to signing him.
“It’s important to us that he had taken the tweet down and important why he had done it,” Bloom told Mass Live. 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.”
Matt Dermody, #67 of the Boston Red Sox, poses for a portrait during Boston Red Sox Photo Day at JetBlue Park at Fenway South on February 21, 2023, in Fort Myers, Florida. (Elsa/Getty Images)
“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.”
Darmody has spent most of his limited time in the big leagues with the Toronto Blue Jays.