Blue Jays' confounding Anthony Bass saga comes to inevitable conclusion

One has to wonder who conceived the Toronto Blue Jays' bungling attempt to rehabilitate the image of the team's mediocre middle reliever Anthony Bass.

The team finally abandoned that effort Friday afternoon, just hours before the 35-year-old right-hander was slated to catch the ceremonial first pitch from Toronto LGBTQ activist leZlie lee Kam as part of the team's annual Pride celebration. Bass was designated for assignment, effectively ending his tenure with the team.

To many beyond the hallways of Blue Jays management, it was an inevitable end to a confounding saga that has dragged on for nearly two weeks.

Bass has spent that time apologizing and at the same time justifying a story he shared on his Instagram on May 29 that urged people of Christian faith to boycott Target and Bud Light because of those companies' support of LGBTQ rights.

Both Budweiser and Target have faced backlash from many conservative circles — Target for its sale of Pride-themed merchandise and Budweiser for its marketing partnership with transgender personality Dylan Mulvaney.

WATCH | Bass apologizes for Instagram post:

Instead of disciplining or holding Bass accountable for his actions, which caused great upset in the city's LGBTQ community, the team appeared to rally around Bass.

They initially shielded him from the media before he popped up before a game on May 30 to issue a terse 'if my actions offended anyone I'm sorry' apology, taking no questions from reporters.

The team even brought in Sherwin Modeste, executive director of Pride Toronto, to meet with Bass.

Helen Kennedy, executive director of Egale Canada, one the country's leading advocates for LGBTQ rights, said the team's handling of this incident has been confusing and insulting.