Los Angeles Angels pitching coach Mickey Callaway was thrown out of Major League Baseball through the end of 2022 for violating the league’s sexual harassment policy.
Callaway, a 46-year-old former pitcher, was placed on MLB‘s ineligible list for two seasons and was dismissed by the Angels on Wednesday after an internal review found he “violated MLB’s policies” and that “placement on the ineligible list is warranted.”
“We want to thank the many people who cooperated with our Department of Investigations [DOI] in their work, which spanned Mr. Callaway’s positions with three different clubs. The clubs that employed Mr. Callaway each fully cooperated with DOI, including providing emails and assisting with identifying key witnesses,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. “Harassment has no place within Major League Baseball, and we are committed to providing an appropriate work environment for all those involved in our game.”
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The Los Angeles Angels fired Callaway immediately after MLB’s announcement.
“Effective immediately, we are ending Mickey Callaway’s employment with the Angels,” the team said. “We appreciate Major League Baseball’s diligent investigation and support their decision.”
This comes after The Athletic reported the first public allegations against Callaway in February, with five women in the sports media industry anonymously accusing him of inappropriate advances, including commenting on their physical appearances and sending unsolicited shirtless photos of himself. One woman accused him of requesting nude photos over the course of a five-year period in which Callaway worked for the Angels, the Cleveland Indians, and the New York Mets.
Callaway, who denied any wrongdoing, was suspended by the Angels pending MLB’s investigation.
The Tennessee native apologized to his accusers in a statement following MLB’s decision.
“My family and I fully support MLB’s strong stance against harassment and discrimination and are grateful to the Commissioner and his office for their thorough investigation,” he said. “I apologize to the women who shared with investigators any interaction that made them feel uncomfortable. To be clear, I never intended to make anyone feel this way and didn’t understand that these interactions might do that or violate MLB policies. However, those are my own blind spots, and I take responsibility for the consequences.”
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Members of the Cleveland Indians have vowed to foster a safer workplace, with team owner Paul Dolan saying the team contracted an “external expert with extensive experience related to workplace culture and reporting practices” to improve the team’s handling of matters related to harassment in the workplace. President Chris Antonetti agreed, saying the women’s discomfort in the work environment is “what keeps [him] up at night.”
Representatives for MLB did not immediately respond to the Washington Examiner‘s request for comment.
