Former Cleveland Indians pitcher T.J. House comes out as gay – cleveland.com
CLEVELAND, Ohio– T.J. House, who pitched for the Cleveland Indians from 2014-16, recently announced his engagement to his long-term boyfriend, Ryan Neitzel.
House played at the Major League level with Cleveland for portions of three seasons, logging a 5-7 record, before signing a minor-league contract with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2017. He was soon called up to major leagues and appeared in two games for the Blue Jays before being designated for assignment. He spent 2018-2020 bounding around the minor leagues and is currently out of baseball.
House took to social media to address not only his coming out, but his support for the Respect for Marriage Act passed by Congress last week, according to Sports Illustrated.
House would be the third former major league player to come out as gay, following former Detroit Tiger outfielder Billy Bean and Los Angeles Dodger outfielder Glenn Burke.
“Today’s passage of the Respect for Marriage Act protects us to have the same rights and opportunities that each of you have,” House wrote on his personal Facebook page on Dec.9.
“It protects the same benefits. It makes us equal to you. It allows Ryan Neitzel and I to come together and create something beautiful. It gives me the confidence to get engaged to the person I love and to marry them.
House said that his fiance challenges him to become a better person and live authentically.
“I’m finally healing, and days like today are what help me continue to grow into the person I’ve been all along, one I’ve locked up for 20-plus years,” he continued. “Today, I am loved.”