Chicago White Sox minor-leaguer Anderson Comás. (Darren Georgia, Darren Georgia/Chicago White Sox)
Anderson Comás thought of those who feel like they don’t have support and wanted to do his part to help when he decided to come out as gay in February.
“I wanted to open that door for those people that are fighting for their dreams,” Comás said during a videoconference call Friday. “I feel like they cannot do it because of people’s opinions, so I wanted to share a little bit to help, to open that door and to inspire all of them to keep fighting.”
The Chicago White Sox minor-league pitcher made an impact with his Feb. 19 Instagram post.
“At first I didn’t think it was going to be that big, going viral in so many countries,” he said. “I was in every news (outlet), every social media. A lot of people talking about me.
“It made me happy because if they get to more people, I can help more people to see the message I wanted to send so they can feel like they have someone to support them and know how they feel. It made me feel great.”
So has the support for him throughout the organization.
“Nothing changed here because my teammates, my coaches, some of them knew,” Comás said. “They were great about it. They really love me here because I’ve been very respectful with my teammates and all my coaches. Nothing changed.”
Erin Santana, the manager of international player development and education, was incredibly helpful.
“She’s like our mom here, the mom of Latinas here,” Comás said. “I was really comfortable with her and I told her about that even before the coming out. I told her, ‘I know I’m going to do this. What do you think?’ And she loved it. So I shared my story with her first because I was really comfortable with her and then I did the coming out.
“Because I talk to them more, Erin Santana and (assistant general manager) Chris Getz, they’ve been really supportive about it. My strength coach (for the Arizona Complex League Sox), Daniel Cobian, he’s always been supporting me too. I have a lot of support here on the team.”
Comás heard from many people after his Instagram post.
“I got like 1,000 messages in my IG DMs from people still in the closet, but they were happy I did that,” he said. “They were feeling better about it. They were happy to see people out there for them to feel better about themselves. It made me feel like I did a good thing.”
Comás, 23, has been in the Sox organization since signing as an international free agent from the Dominican Republic in 2016. He was an outfielder from 2017-21 and is in his second season as a pitcher.
Comás went 1-0 with a 6.35 ERA in 11 relief appearances in 2022. He’s continuing to work on his pitching this spring in Arizona.
“The decision (to pitch), I think Chris Getz was the one, they asked me if I wanted to do it and I said, ‘Yeah, let’s give it a try,’” he said. “Because I’m lefty and I’m tall (6-foot-3), I wanted to try that new thing. At first I was a little bit lost because I didn’t even know how to throw breaking balls. But now I felt like I have been progressing a lot.
“Now I feel like a real pitcher. At first I was afraid of throwing the ball. It wasn’t that easy but it was a new thing. I just worked on it and then I came back ready this year. It’s been good because I just love the game. No matter if I hit or pitch, I love this game, so I will be doing that.”
Comás knows he already has made a meaningful mark beyond strikeouts.
“I decided to do it because now it’s 2023, people are changing and now I feel comfortable about that,” Comás said. “So that’s why I did it. I waited for the right time.
“I just felt like now is the right time. Now is when I feel good with myself. Now I accept myself. I love myself enough to tell people and feel great about it.
“At first I was afraid to say it, for people to know about me. Now I feel strong enough to say it to people without caring what they say about me.”
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Originally published at Tribune News Service