Billy Bean, who grew to become the second former Main League Baseball participant to return out as homosexual in 1999 earlier than changing into the game’s senior vp for range, fairness and inclusion, has died. He was 60.

MLB launched an announcement confirming his dying. Bean died at house on Tuesday after a yearlong combat with acute myeloid leukemia.

The California native performed in six large league seasons from 1987 to 1995, making his debut with the Detroit Tigers in a four-hit efficiency that tied a file for a participant in his first recreation. He additionally performed for the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres. He was a two-time All-American outfielder at Loyola Marymount, main the staff to the NCAA Males’s School World Collection in 1986.

Bean wrote a guide titled “Going the Different Means” and was additionally a keynote speaker at many occasions. He publicly got here out as homosexual in 1999, the second former main leaguer to take action after Glenn Burke.

Bean joined the commissioner’s workplace in 2014, when he was employed by former Commissioner Bud Selig to be MLB’s first Ambassador for Inclusion. He spent greater than 10 years working for MLB, ultimately being promoted to senior vp.

Bean labored with MLB golf equipment to “advance equality for all gamers, coaches, managers, umpires, workers, and stakeholders all through baseball to make sure an equitable, inclusive, and supportive office for everybody.”

“Our hearts are damaged right this moment as we mourn our pricey buddy and colleague, Billy Bean, one of many kindest and most revered people I’ve ever recognized,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred mentioned in an announcement. “Billy was a buddy to numerous folks throughout our recreation, and he made a distinction by means of his fixed dedication to others.”