This profile is part of Queerty’s 2021 Out For Good series, recognizing public figures who’ve had the courage to come out and make a difference in the past year, in celebration of National Coming Out Day on October 11.
Name: Kieran Lovegrove, 27
Bio: Originally from Johannesburg, South Africa, Lovegrove was first drafted to pitch for the Cleveland Indians in 2012. Since then, he’s played on nine different minor league baseball teams, including the San Francisco Giants and the L.A. Dodgers. Most recently, he pitched for the Rocket City Trash Pandas.
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Coming out: Lovegrove came out as bisexual to ESPN in October. During the interview, he talked openly about his struggles with depression, anxiety, homelessness, and alcoholism. He also expressed confidence that there are many other players just like him who are still in the closet.
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“Baseball is a game of statistics,” he said. “And if you want to tell me that I’m the only queer person in baseball, I’m just not going to agree with you.”
Lovegrove credited his long-term girlfriend, Celia, for helping him find the strength to share his truth publicly, and he encouraged other LGBTQ players to contact him if they needed support coming out.
“Someone is terrified because it’s a terrifying prospect to come out,” he said. “I do encourage any one of them to reach out to me.”
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Chosen family: After speaking to ESPN, Lovegrove did a follow-up interview with The Advocate, where he talked about the overwhelming sense of inner peace he’s felt since sharing his truth with the world.
“From a sexuality standpoint, just being authentic leads to peace of mind,” he said. “I wasn’t who I thought I was for a long time.”
“I was always trying to fit in for a certain masculine crowd, and nothing came of it. Now, as I’ve been open about who I am, I find commonalities with my teammates who are really like a family. Coming out to your team, who you’re with 24/7, is a big thing. I really felt like the players I told supported me. They were just good people.”
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Those who came out to make a difference
Jim
Normally I say, “It’s the 21st century. Get over yourself.”
But in this case I won’t because I’m sure he wants to play in the majors and there’s no telling what affect this may have.
Cam
It’s the 21st century, and Republicans in multiple states are trying to undo Marriage and adoption rights for LGBTQ people, and more than once state has passed laws and are trying to get them through the courts that Doctors, Nurses, EMTs firefighters, etc, can leave Queer people without treatment if they don’t like us.
But yeah, tell people publicly coming out to “Get over themselves”.
Donston
Many everyday people still have trouble legit being “out” whether it’s due to ego, insecurities, internalized phobias, fragile masculinity, religion, mental health struggles, sociology, family, career, fluidity, confusions about their placement in gender, sexual, romantic, affection, emotion, commitment spectrum. And many folks still confront violence, harassment, being cut-off from friends or family, limitations in their career/personal ambitions. It being 21sf century does not nullify that.
I know you’re a troll, and you’re gonna keep trolling. But that was for people who sincerely don’t get it.
People will complain that he has a whole ass longterm gf and doesn’t seem interested in moving on from that. And I do get that. At the end of the day, if you choose hetero commitment then you have chosen the path of hetero-normalcy no matter your dimensions or identities or lifestyle. And that’s something many people do need to understand. But “coming out” is first and foremost supposed to be about wanting to feel free and honest not about sex or who you want to have a commitment with. And at least he hasn’t said anything problematic or insecure and doesn’t seem mostly driven by self-promotion or wanting to sell something or looking for “queers” to make him feel like he belongs and to give him an ego boost, money and relevance.
Gourmet Guy
Oh, if only we lived in a world where we could tell people who differed from the mainstream to “Get over yourself.” We live in no such world, and anyone who thinks we do should get over himself.
Gourmet Guy
I love you, Kieran Lovegrove. I wish you acres of inner peace, and even more, I wish you love.