During a tense moment of play, Red Sox All-Star outfielder Jarren Duran called a fan a homophobic slur. He quickly apologized in a positive way that makes us wonder why so many people find this so hard to do in a crisis. We say this even though Duran’s effort didn’t prevent him from being punished.

It was Sunday, August 11, and the Red Sox were playing a home game against the Houston Astros. The Sox were down 10 runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. Duran was at bat. In came a 94-mile-an-hour cutter that he swung at and missed.

A fan, hoping to provide helpful advice to Duran, yelled out that, instead of a baseball bat, he needed a tennis racket. The batter apparently didn’t appreciate the advice, and responded by telling the fan to shut up, using both an expletive and the aforementioned homophobic slur.

According to Sports Illustrated’s account, Duran (pictured) didn’t utter this loudly, but it was picked up by the TV microphones. So, a hot-mic situation. Awful Announcing’s X account has a clip of it, including the offensive language — you’ve been warned.

Full Apology

About five hours after the game ended, 27-year-old Duran released an apology. It’s worth quoting in full because it’s a good example of an apology made without excuses.

“During tonight’s game, I used a truly horrific word when responding to a fan,” Duran wrote. “I feel awful knowing how many people I offended and disappointed. I apologize to the entire Red Sox organization, but more importantly to the entire 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.”

It’s hard to find fault with that apology. It names the offense and apologizes to the right people. Yes, the “grow as a person” bit is a cliché, but it indicates he wants to try to avoid a repeat performance, which is important in these apologies. The only thing he didn’t do was offer some recompense, such as to a charity.

Two Games

The Red Sox released its own statement and apology, noting the team had “addressed this incident with Jarren immediately following today’s game.” Apparently, that wasn’t enough. On Monday, it suspended him for two games without pay and said it would donate the saved salary to PFLAG (Federation of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays). There’s that recompense.

The Red Sox scrambled to determine its crisis response, already working on it by the end of the game, according to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo. The effort included calls with Duran’s camp and MLB officials. When the player met with journalists on Monday and apologized again, “Red Sox President Sam Kennedy and Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow lingered a few feet behind the scrum of reporters,” Chelsea Janes wrote in The Washington Post. The high officials’ involvement shows the team took the matter seriously.

Alas, Duran appeared before the press throng wearing his unofficial “uniform” for this season: a T-shirt bearing the words “[Expletive] ’Em.” Some suggest his sartorial choice at this time puts into question his sincerity.

Photo Credit: Boston Red Sox

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