Wednesday night’s Toronto Blue Jays – Atlanta Braves game had plenty of notable events, including Atlanta first baseman Freddie Freeman getting hit in the wrist by a pitch (he’ll require a MRI) and the benches briefly clearing after a Jose Bautista home run, bat flip and slow trot. Blue Jays’ center fielder Kevin Pillar’s confrontation with Jason Motte following an alleged quick-pitch may wind up being the most newsworthy, though, as Pillar has been accused from numerous corners of making a homophobic slur against Motte. Here’s video of the incident:
https://twitter.com/TheRenderMLB/status/865030916695097344
Here’s a closer look:
And another look:
A whole lot of people thought that was Pillar yelling a slur:
https://twitter.com/vinnyafterdark/status/865026536604348417
https://twitter.com/agrabia/status/865025880963153920
After the game, Pillar offered a limited apology, but one that doesn’t really seem to live up to the seriousness of what he’s accused of:
And plenty weren’t satisfied:
https://twitter.com/lesley_mak/status/865044598544093186
It’s notable that the Blue Jays have recent history with homophobic slurs, as Yunel Escobar wound up in hot water for a slur on his eye black back in 2012, which led to him being traded soon after. Many noted that it seems unlikely the same level of punishment will come down against Pillar:
https://twitter.com/DrewGROF/status/865049446014496769
https://twitter.com/IamHarshDave/status/865041666700435456
Yunel Escobar got chased out of town over this slur on his eye-black. Fans/media ripped his "culture" too. Neither will happen with Pillar.
— Paul Dawkins (@Paul__Dawkins) May 18, 2017
Oh, and while this would be problematic on any day, the timing here might have been particularly bad:
It’s going to be interesting to see how this develops, and if there are any further apologies from Pillar, or actions against him from the team or the league.