Billy Bean, former MLB player and executive, passed away at the age of 60
8 august 2024 в 05:13
Former Major League Baseball player and executive Billy Bean passed away at the age of 60.
MLB released a statement confirming his death, stating that he passed away at home on Tuesday after a year-long battle with acute myeloid leukemia.
«We deeply mourn the loss of our friend and colleague Billy Bean, MLB’s Senior Vice President of Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion, and Special Assistant to the Commissioner», - MLB wrote. «For the past 10 years, Billy has worked tirelessly and with great enthusiasm with MLB and all 30 clubs, focusing on player education, LGBT inclusion, and social justice initiatives to promote equality in the game for all».
«Commissioner Rob Manfred called Billy 'one of the kindest and most respected individuals I have ever known,' and someone who 'made Baseball a better institution, both on and off the field,'» the post concluded.
A former baseball player, whose teams included the Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Dodgers, and San Diego Padres, Bean was the second former MLB player to come out as gay in 1999 before becoming Senior Vice President of Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion in sports.
In 1999, The New York Times noted that he was «the first Major League player to publicly discuss his homosexuality to such a degree» when he came out as a member of the LGBT community.
«I was always a little Billy Bean, a little, but big-hearted, player, playing hurt, enduring», - said Bean, who was born in Santa Ana, California, in 1964, to The Times. «My mom worked two jobs, and I started a new elementary school every year. Because there were mostly just the two of us, I always felt like an adult, responsible. I was precise and methodical, like her. And very emotional. I wanted to please people, make them proud».
Bean’s father left when he was just 6 months old, but his mother married police officer Ed Kovak, who supported his stepson.
«A handshake is a bond in our house», - Kovak said. «And that’s Billy. He was always a credit to the family, the game, and, of course, not for me to judge, but probably to the gay community as well».
In 2014, Bean published his memoir «Going the Other Way: Intimate Memoirs of Life in and out of Major League Baseball». That same year, MLB named him its first Ambassador for Inclusion, a role that allowed him to support LGBT+ individuals in baseball
MLB released a statement confirming his death, stating that he passed away at home on Tuesday after a year-long battle with acute myeloid leukemia.
«We deeply mourn the loss of our friend and colleague Billy Bean, MLB’s Senior Vice President of Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion, and Special Assistant to the Commissioner», - MLB wrote. «For the past 10 years, Billy has worked tirelessly and with great enthusiasm with MLB and all 30 clubs, focusing on player education, LGBT inclusion, and social justice initiatives to promote equality in the game for all».
«Commissioner Rob Manfred called Billy 'one of the kindest and most respected individuals I have ever known,' and someone who 'made Baseball a better institution, both on and off the field,'» the post concluded.
A former baseball player, whose teams included the Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Dodgers, and San Diego Padres, Bean was the second former MLB player to come out as gay in 1999 before becoming Senior Vice President of Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion in sports.
In 1999, The New York Times noted that he was «the first Major League player to publicly discuss his homosexuality to such a degree» when he came out as a member of the LGBT community.
«I was always a little Billy Bean, a little, but big-hearted, player, playing hurt, enduring», - said Bean, who was born in Santa Ana, California, in 1964, to The Times. «My mom worked two jobs, and I started a new elementary school every year. Because there were mostly just the two of us, I always felt like an adult, responsible. I was precise and methodical, like her. And very emotional. I wanted to please people, make them proud».
Bean’s father left when he was just 6 months old, but his mother married police officer Ed Kovak, who supported his stepson.
«A handshake is a bond in our house», - Kovak said. «And that’s Billy. He was always a credit to the family, the game, and, of course, not for me to judge, but probably to the gay community as well».
In 2014, Bean published his memoir «Going the Other Way: Intimate Memoirs of Life in and out of Major League Baseball». That same year, MLB named him its first Ambassador for Inclusion, a role that allowed him to support LGBT+ individuals in baseball
© Kolganov Andrey
