ATLANTA (AP) — Atlanta Braves pitcher Sean Newcomb apologized Sunday for racist, homophobic and sexist tweets he sent as a teenager, calling them “some stupid stuff.”
The 25-year-old Newcomb spoke less than an hour after nearly pitching a no-hitter against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The tweets were sent in 2011 and 2012, when he was 18.
“I just wanted to apologize for any insensitive material,” Newcomb said. “It was a long time ago, six or seven years ago, saying some stupid stuff with friends.”
“I know I’ve grown a lot since then. I didn’t mean anything by it. It was just something stupid I did a long time ago and I didn’t mean anything by it, for sure,” he said.
Major League Baseball, which dealt with a similar situation this month involving Milwaukee Brewers reliever Josh Hader on the night he pitched in the All-Star Game, said it was aware of Newcomb’s tweets.
“We plan to identify an appropriate course of diversity training in the Atlanta community,” MLB said in a statement.
MLB also said it expected Newcomb would meet this week with Billy Bean, the sport’s vice president for social responsibility and inclusion. Bean is a former big league outfielder and openly gay.
Hader apologized after offensive tweets sent when he was a teen came to light on July 17. The next day, MLB said the 24-year-old Hader will be required to go through sensitivity training and participate in diversity and inclusion initiatives.
Atlanta’s clubhouse had already closed to the media after he answered questions about his career-best moment, a 4-1 victory in which he came within one strike of pitching a no-hitter.
Newcomb said he had forgotten about the tweets until he picked up his phone postgame and saw mentions of the posts. The Braves reopened the locker room about 30 minutes later — Newcomb said it was his idea for a team official to bring reporters back downstairs so he could address the subject.
“This is something obviously that can’t be happening,” he said. “I feel bad about it. I don’t mean to offend anybody. It was six, seven years ago. I didn’t mean anything by it and I definitely regret it, for sure.”
Newcomb said he doesn’t think the tweets will cause fallout among current teammates.
“No, I don’t think so,” he said. “I think people that know me know that’s not the kind of person I am. It’s been a long time since then and at the same time I didn’t mean anything by it.”
