When you're in the market for a new job, first impressions can mean a lot. That's true even if you're about to become a professional baseball player, too.
The Washington Nationals are unlikely to sign their 15th-round draft pick, shortstop Zach Houchins, after discovering racist remarks on his Twitter page.
Houchins, who was drafted out of Louisburg College in North Carolina, told the Nats' website that he hasn't heard back from the team after a string of racist tweets were discovered on his Twitter page.
"I apologized to [assistant general manager] Mr. Roy Clark," Houchins told the website when talking about his last contact with the organization. "I apologized to him for what was said on Twitter. [Clark said], 'Yeah, anything you said on Twitter was completely unacceptable.' I understood where he was coming from. That was pretty much the conversation."
As the Business Insider pointed out on Tuesday, Houchins' insensitive tweets were published after he was drafted on a Nationals blog, For Love of the Nationals.
"I'm not a racist, not at all," Houchins continued when talking to the Nats' team site. "Four of my best friends, two of them are black, one of them was my roommate. He is probably one of the closest people I've ever been around. … Me and my four best friends became so close, it's just how we talk. It wasn't anything derogatory or anything like that. It's just how we talk."
The Nats have until Aug. 16 to sign Houchins.
Not surprisingly, his Twitter account has been disabled.
