Despite getting blowback for using an anti-gay slur over the weekend, the support for Jarren Duran has been astronomical.
The Boston Red Sox outfielder was caught using an anti-gay slur at a heckling fan during the game against the Houston Astros on Sunday.
Duran made the remark as he stepped to the plate in the sixth inning. A fan shouted at him that he needed a tennis racket. The player yelled back, “Shut up,” followed by the slur.
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Duran apologized, but he still served a two-game suspension – his game checks for Monday and Tuesday will be donated to PFLAG, a nonprofit that supports the LGBTQ+ community.
The 27-year-old has burst onto the scene this year, earning his first All-Star nod, so Duran jerseys have been rather popular around Fenway Park.
However, expect to see many more of them just about everywhere – Duran’s jersey, at the time of publishing, is the top-selling jersey on the online MLB shop.
Shohei Ohtani jerseys make up the next three spots, and five of the next eight – the customizable Dodgers jersey ranks fifth, while customizable Padres jerseys rank seventh and eighth.
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This is a rather common happenstance in sports – the jersey sales of the Philadelphia Flyers’ Ivan Provorov skyrocketed after he refused to wear pride-themed merchandise during warmups, citing his religion. Harrison Butker also saw a rapid increase in jersey sales following his speech at Benedictine College.
“During tonight’s game, I used a truly horrific word when responding to a fan,” Duran said in a statement. “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.”
Duran leads the majors with 13 triples, and his 36 doubles are tops in the American League. He’s hitting .291 with an .853 OPS. He is set to return from his suspension on Wednesday against the defending World Series champion Texas Rangers.
Fox News’ Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report.
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