“‘Your sexuality has nothing to do with your ability”. “I think it’s a great thing when people can clear their mind and just be honest with people around them”. They never said they were upset about me being gay. The first baseman/outfielder, now playing for Helena, has hit.232/.319/.368 with five home runs and 25 RBIs in 65 games between Helena and Wisconsin this season. That Denson is now connected to an Major League Baseball team will bring more attention to his story in the weeks ahead, but both players deserve credit for coming out.
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Denson was a 15th-round pick by the Brewers in the 2013 amateur draft out of South Hills High School in West Covina, Calif., and is in his third season in the organization.
Earlier this summer, pitcher Sean Conroy revealed that he is gay, but he plays for the Sonoma Stompers of the independent Pacific Association, a league that is not affiliated with MLB. The entire sequence led to Denson coming out in impromptu fashion, which he says was well received. The difference being is Denson had the courage to publically announce his sexual orientation without any fear of the repercussions that could accompany it. Now that he is playing with a clearer head, he might start to ascend through the franchise’s system, though he has a long way to go if he wants to become the first openly gay player in the majors. “Hopefully this kind of gets something out of the way that allows all of his talents to shine through”.
That teammate had no way of knowing Denson actually is gay, but the 20-year-old slugger of African-American and Hispanic descent quickly seized the opportunity. He worked with former MLB player, Billy Bean-who serves as the league’s Ambassador for Inclusion-to make his announcement to the general public. David has two loving parents who obviously are very concerned.
Major League Baseball joins pro soccer, basketball, and football…as team sports that have had players come out. But for baseball player David Denson, keeping a part of his identity a secret left him depressed-and it was starting to take a toll on his batting average.
“The beauty of what could come from this is he can be an example that can help change that perception and change the stereotype that there would never be a gay person on a men’s professional sports team”, Bean said.
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“When I finally told them about my sexuality, Reid said, ‘To me, it doesn’t matter. you’re still a ballplayer”. “That was something I struggled with”.
