Recently, Red Sox star Jarren Duran was penalized with a two-game suspension over a slur he shouted during the Sunday matchup against the Houston Astros. The incident occurred when Duran engaged in a shouting match with a fan during the 6th inning at Fenway Park. Since then, Duran has apologized for using the “horrific word” he hurled at the fan.
“During tonight’s game, I used a truly horrific word when responding to a fan,” he said Sunday night, expressing remorse for his outburst. Duran has subsequently faced accusations of homophobia, given the nature of the slur he used. In his apology, he noted that he fell short of being a good role model in his platform as an MLB star.
“I feel awful knowing how many people I offended and disappointed. I apologize to the entire Red Sox organization, but more importantly, to the 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,” he said.
Duran noted that the fan was just a heckler and that he shouldn’t have let it upset him. “Just a heckler heckling me the entire game, and I just let the moment get the best of me. I said something I shouldn’t be saying,” he said. He further stated in the Red Sox locker room, “I wanted to say that I’ve had some fans reach out to me and tell me that they’re disappointed in me. I want to let them know that I am sorry for my actions and am going to work on being better.”
The outfielder continued, “I don’t think my actions should represent what the [Red Sox] and MLB represent.” Duran emphasized that he would use the incident as an opportunity to learn and grow from his mistakes. “It was a bad moment on my part and there was no intent behind it. It was a dumb mistake that I am going to learn from.”
The team’s manager, Alex Cora, addressed the controversy, stating, “Obviously, knowing the situation, it’s hard to say we have to move forward because there is a lot of work we have to do. Not only Jarren as a person but us as a group.” Cora maintained that he will do whatever is needed to help Cora move forward from the incident.
The manager added, “There is a lot of work to be done, but I’m here to help him out. I reached out to him throughout the day. He made a big mistake and he is living with it. As a manager, I have to do my job. As a person, there is more from my end. It’s not about what happens tonight with the roster; it’s what I do to support him. Me, Alex, I will be there to help him out.
Cora continued, “The kid made a mistake. There is a lot of stuff we have to do to help him out. There is stuff he has to do to keep getting better. The other stuff, the baseball part of it — it’s not the same clubhouse as 24 hours ago. … But I don’t think things will change the way they see him.”
Featured image credit: Rickmunroe01, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:JarrenDuran.jpg
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