Matt Garza threw the Twitter equivalent of a wild pitch Thursday night — and that might be an understatement.
Earlier that night, actress Jessica Chastain expressed her concern with the U.S. Senate’s dismantling of the Affordable Care Act, which could have unfortunate consequences for women.
#BirthControl is no longer covered by health insurance. Congrats USA, you're doing your part to keep women out of the work force. #smfh 😠
— Jessica Chastain (@jes_chastain) January 13, 2017
Chastain’s tweet somehow popped up on Garza’s radar, and the Milwaukee Brewers pitcher responded with this scorching take:
It's called abstinence, a word that has been forgotten amongst this generation… it's the best contraceptive… #juatsaying https://t.co/OgKg1qQmln
What do you think? Leave a comment.— Matt garza (@Gdeuceswild) January 13, 2017
Garza’s stance, apparently, is if you want to avoid getting pregnant, just don’t have sex, which is like telling someone to avoid car accidents by never driving again. It’s a dumb argument to begin with, but in Garza’s case, it’s also hypocritical: The right-hander has six children, the first of whom was born when Garza was 18 years old.
This fact wasn’t lost on the internet, which had no problem calling out the Brewers pitcher.
.@Gdeuceswild Yeahhh. How many ppl do you know who are abstinent? Don't lecture women about abstinence…especially when you had a kid at 18
— Nick Blair Wilfong (@nickbwilfong) January 13, 2017
https://twitter.com/HaverOfOpinions/status/819909918073516033
https://twitter.com/BobbyJDaniels/status/819919957043585024
Me: I'm going to the beach this weekend and I need a good sunscreen.
Matt Garza: Not going to the beach is the best sunscreen.— Craig Calcaterra (@craigcalcaterra) January 13, 2017
@jes_chastain educate yourself. Women take birth control for health reasons too. Not just to prevent pregnancy.
— Stefanie (@Stefmara) January 13, 2017
Then again, this tweet is coming from a guy who once directed a string of sexist tweets at the wife of then-Oakland Athletics shortstop Eric Sogard, so maybe we shouldn’t be surprised.
Thumbnail photo via Kevin Jairaj/USA TODAY Sports Images