Sports

Blue Jays swing into damage control on Anthony Bass’ anti-LGBTQ+ Instagram post

Published

1 year ago

May 30, 2023

Blue Jays reliever Anthony Bass makes a statement prior to the start of the Jays-Brewers game on Tuesday night. Photo by Mark Blinch /Getty Images

It may have been ignorance or insincerity. Or perhaps it was just a well-scripted apology to afford Anthony Bass a perceived easy escape route from a mess of his own making that could follow the Blue Jays deep into the next month.

A month, by the way, that the team has elaborate and heavily marketed plans to celebrate its commitment to inclusion as it applies to the LGBTQ+ community.

Whatever it was, the four words with which the Jays relief pitcher began his apology to fans and the Pride community weren’t exactly warm in sentiment.

“I’ll make this quick,” Bass said before his 35-second, carefully crafted statement was delivered with little emotion to the “Pride community.”

While he said some of the right things, the media was told Bass would not be taking questions, again hoping for a clean and quick exit.

The reality is, however, that there’s a good chance that nothing will be a quick fix for the player or the organization, which was tellingly quiet by not addressing the issue and not allowing Bass to be questioned for his actions.

So of course there’s a chance this won’t end well.

“I recognize yesterday I made a post that was hurtful to the Pride community, which includes friends of mine and close family members of mine and I’m truly sorry for that,” Bass said, stern-faced, when he addressed the media just outside the Jays dugout. “I just spoke to my teammates and shared with them my actions yesterday and I apologized with them.

“As of right now I’m using the Blue Jays resources to better educate myself and to make better decisions going forward.”

Bass’ dive into hot water began on Monday when the pitcher’s Instagram account shared a video from a user whose feed encourages Christians to boycott Target and Budweiser in protest of those companies’ support of the LGBTQ+ community.

The reaction was rightfully swift and not a good look for the team. Bass and the Jays were subsequently criticized both on social and mainstream media, especially in light of the team’s planned celebrations for Pride Month, a worthy initiative by the club.

The Jays clearly hope it will be go away before the June 9-10 Pride weekend at the ballpark, which it has been advertising heavily.

The team did say in a statement that, “Individual player sentiments are not representative of the club’s beliefs.”

Jays manager John Schneider addressed the issue on Tuesday afternoon while he was trying to prepare his struggling team for a game against the Milwaukee Brewers.

To his credit, Schneider was forthright with his comments, noting that a simple apology from Bass can’t be the end of the reparation. And the manager was the one person in the organization willing to put on the big boy pants and venture into territory Bass wouldn’t (or, perhaps, wasn’t allowed to by the team when he didn’t take questions).

“First and foremost, it’s not a 12- or 15-second fix,” Schneider said. “We’re not going to pretend like this never happened. We’re not going to pretend like this is the end of it and move on. There’s definitely more steps that are going to follow.”

Schneider took a leadership role in addressing the issue where others in the organization failed miserably. In fact, it was the manager’s initiative to get Bass to address his teammates.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider also spoke to reporters about Bass’ comments. AP FILE PHOTO

“The first thing he did was apologize to me and (GM Ross Atkins),” Schneider said. “I thought it would be a good idea to tell it to his teammates as well. It takes a lot to stand up in front of them to say, ‘I screwed up.’

“I thought it would be good for him to let everyone know that at once, as opposed to intermittent conversations during the day.”

Where it goes from here is anyone’s guess, though few would be surprised if the fallout lingers. Bass is still part of the Jays relief core and he will set up shop in the bullpen, the area that now has fans right on top of it at the remodelled Rogers Centre.

Are the Jays concerned that the fallout will be a distraction? Not for now, at least.

“I don’t think it will be in the clubhouse,” Schneider said. “I think his apology was authentic and powerful to both the coaching staff and his teammates.

“When it comes to how a fan base views you, whether it’s a player or a manager, you have to own up to things that you do,” Schneider said. “And you have to recognize when you do things that are hurtful or wrong, and you have to admit that and have things that you do going forward that won’t allow that to happen again.”

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Sports

Edler to sign one-day contract to retire as a Vancouver Canuck

Published

4 hours ago

September 17, 2024

Anne Joseph

VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Canucks announced Tuesday that defenceman Alex Edler will sign a one-day contract in order to officially retire as a member of the NHL team.

The signing will be part of a celebration of Edler’s career held Oct. 11 when the Canucks host the Philadelphia Flyers.

The Canucks selected Edler, from Ostersund, Sweden, in the third round (91st overall) of the 2004 NHL draft.

He played in 925 career games for the Canucks between the 2006-07 and 2020-21 seasons, ranking fourth in franchise history and first among defencemen.

The 38-year-old leads all Vancouver defencemen with 99 goals, 310 assists and 177 power-play points with the team.

Edler also appeared in 82 career post-season contests with Vancouver and was an integral part of the Canucks’ run to the 2011 Stanley Cup final, putting up 11 points (2-9-11) across 25 games.

“I am humbled and honoured to officially end my career and retire as a member of the Vancouver Canucks,” Edler said in a release. “I consider myself lucky to have started my career with such an outstanding organization, in this amazing city, with the best fans in the NHL. Finishing my NHL career where it all began is something very special for myself and my family.”

Edler played two seasons for Los Angeles in 2021-22 and 2022-23. He did not play in the NHL last season.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.

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Sports

Sixth-ranked Canadian women to face World Cup champion Spain in October friendly

Published

10 hours ago

September 17, 2024

Anne Joseph

The sixth-ranked Canadian women will face World Cup champion Spain in an international friendly next month.

Third-ranked Spain will host Canada on Oct. 25 at Estadio Francisco de la Hera in Almendralejo.

The game will be the first for the Canadian women since the Paris Olympics, where they lost to Germany in a quarterfinal penalty shootout after coach Bev Priestman was sent home and later suspended for a year by FIFA over her part in Canada’s drone-spying scandal.

In announcing the Spain friendly, Canada Soccer said more information on the interim women’s coaching staff for the October window will come later. Assistant coach Andy Spence took charge of the team in Priestman’s absence at the Olympics.

Spain finished fourth in Paris, beaten 1-0 by Germany in the bronze-medal match.

Canada is winless in three previous meetings (0-2-1) with Spain, most recently losing 1-0 at the Arnold Clark Cup in England in February 2022.

The teams played to a scoreless draw in May 2019 in Logroñés, Spain in a warm-up for the 2019 World Cup. Spain won 1-0 in March 2019 at the Algarve Cup in São João da Venda, Portugal.

Spain is a powerhouse in the women’s game these days.

It won the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2022 and was runner-up in 2018. And it ousted Canada 2-1 in the round of 16 of the current U-20 tournament earlier this month in Colombia before falling 1-0 to Japan after extra time in the quarterfinal.

Spain won the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2018 and 2022 and has finished on the podium on three other occasions.

FC Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmati (2023) and Alexia Putellas (2021 and ’22) have combined to win the last three Women’s Ballon d’Or awards.

And Barcelona has won three of the last four UEFA Women’s Champions League titles.

“We continue to strive to diversify our opponent pool while maintaining a high level of competition.” Daniel Michelucci, Canada Soccer’s director of national team operations, said in a statement. “We anticipate a thrilling encounter, showcasing two of the world’s top-ranked teams.”

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024

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Maple Leafs announce Oreo as new helmet sponsor for upcoming NHL season

Published

14 hours ago

September 17, 2024

Anne Joseph

TORONTO – The Toronto Maple Leafs have announced cookie brand Oreo as the team’s helmet sponsor for the upcoming NHL season.

The new helmet will debut Sunday when Toronto opens its 2024-25 pre-season against the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Arena.

The Oreo logo replaces Canadian restaurant chain Pizza Pizza, which was the Leafs’ helmet sponsor last season.

Previously, social media platform TikTok sponsored Toronto starting in the 2021-22 regular season when the league began allowing teams to sell advertising space on helmets.

The Oreo cookie consists of two chocolate biscuits around a white icing filling and is often dipped in milk.

Fittingly, the Leafs wear the Dairy Farmers of Ontario’s “Milk” logo on their jerseys.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.

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