By Ken Reed
Sean Conroy made baseball history Thursday night when he pitched the Sonoma Stompers to a 7-0 victory during his first start with the independent Pacific Association of Baseball Clubs team.
The Stompers did not make a special announcement about the milestone so Conroy could focus on his pitching, General Manager Theo Fightmaster said. However, Conroy got the loudest cheer from the small crowd when the lineups were announced.
Conroy and Fightmaster were thrilled to be part of history.
“His goal has always been to be the first openly gay baseball player, so he was very much in favor of telling the story, of carrying that torch,” said Fightmaster.
Conroy is viewed as a marginal Major League Baseball prospect. It’s unlikely he’ll ever pitch a game in a big league park. But that doesn’t lessen the importance of what he did Thursday night.
“It doesn’t matter if he pitches in the big leagues or not, he’s going to become a leader in many ways,” said Billy Bean, MLB’s ambassador of inclusion. Bean came out as gay after he retired from Major League Baseball.
— Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director, League of Fans
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