Nationals Pitcher Snubs Trump in Solidarity With Wife's Lesbian Moms

It's a tradition for championship teams to pay a visit to the White House and meet the president, but under the current administration, World Series-winning pitcher Sean Doolittle of the Washington Nationals didn't feel comfortable doing that. He recently told the Washington Postthat his decision to skip the White House visit is based largely on his wife being the daughter of two moms.

He told the Post he had many reasons for skipping the meeting. "My wife and I stand for inclusion and acceptance, and we've done work with refugees, people that come from, you know, the 'shithole countries,' he said, referring to Trump's comments about immigration from 2018.

Another, more personal, reason is that his wife has two lesbian mothers who are very active in the LGBTQ+ community. "I want to show support for them," he said. "I think that it's an important part of allyship, and I don't want to turn my back on them."

He gets it.

Doolittle also mentioned Trump's race relations, conspiracy theories, and divisive rhetoric -- as well as that time he mocked a disabled reporter -- as reasons for his decision. The 33-year-old, who had one save in the World Series, has long been vocal about supporting the LGBTQ+ community as a member of the Nationals and other teams he's played on, including promoting the Nats' Night OUT game which benefits LGBTQ+ charities.

But despite having a stadium full of fans who loudly booed the president, just seven players from the 40 man roster other than Doolittle declined to attend following the team's win over the Houston Astros. Javy Guerra said he had to prepare for his wedding, but Joe Ross, Wander Suero, Wilmer Difo, Michael Taylor, Victor Robles, and Anthony Rendon didn't give a reason for not going.

They were smart to decline the invitation. It was an awkward event that featured one player donning a "Make America Great Again" hat and getting a weird combination boob pat and hug from behind from the president, and another player thanking the president for his work.

Doolittle is far from the first athlete to decline an invitation to the Trump White House, however. Megan Rapinoe famously said "I'm not going to the fucking White House" after the U.S. Women's National Team won the World Cup this year, while the entire Philadelphia Eagles team was uninvited after the majority of the roster and coaches threatened to not attend following Trump's demand they stand for the National Anthem.

Other champions who would traditionally visit the White House weren't even invited, including WNBA championship and college basketball teams. Two-time NBA champs Golden State Warriors were also snubbed after two-time MVP Steph Curry tweeted about not wanting to attend.

Several players from nearly every championship team since 2016 have also declined invitations.

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