After reports that a senior executive with the Washington Nationals excluded Catholic pitcher Trevor Williams from the team’s social media because of his faith, CatholicVote President and CEO Kelsey Reinhardt called on Nationals owner Mark Lerner in a May 27 statement to explain the decision and urged Catholics nationwide to support Williams and “build something good” from the injustice.
As Zeale News previously reported, Sean Hudson, the Nationals’ director of community relations, was recorded on hidden camera saying the team avoided featuring Williams in social media content because he is “very Catholic” and had publicly criticized the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2023 for honoring a group known for mocking Catholicism.
>> CatholicVote demands answers in Washington Nationals’ anti-Catholicism scandal <<
According to O'Keefe Media Group, Hudson was placed on administrative leave after the footage was published.
If Hudson’s admission that the team sidelines Williams is true, Reinhardt said, then “this is religious discrimination.”
"What was his crime to deserve this punishment?” Reinhardt continued. “Williams stood up when the Los Angeles Dodgers chose to honor a group infamous for mocking Our Lord, Our Lady, the Eucharist, priests, and religious sisters.”
Reinhardt urged Catholics nationwide to follow Williams on social media and leave him a message of support: "You are not alone. Millions of Catholics are grateful for your courage. And we are praying for you.”
"This is how Catholics respond: We demand justice…and then we build something good," Reinhardt stated.
She also cited Terry Schilling, president of the American Principles Project, who said on X that the stakes of the case extend beyond baseball.
"Such things can happen anywhere: on sports teams, on school boards, and the boards of corporations nationwide," Schilling said.
Reinhardt said that CatholicVote “is demanding answers and immediate action from Washington Nationals owner Mark Lerner.”
“The message to the Washington Nationals is clear: Catholics will not be quietly pushed out of public life.”