Red Sox pitcher Garrett Whitlock learned sign language as his ‘first language’
Whitlock learned sign language from his mother, who is an interpreter, he said.
Red Sox pitcher Garrett Whitlock learned sign language as his “first language,” according to a video the Red Sox posted earlier this month when they hosted a Deaf and Hard of Hearing night at Fenway Park.
Whitlock’s mother is a sign-language interpreter and taught him sign language when he was a child, according to MassLive.
“I mostly use it in communication with my mom,” Whitlock told MassLive. “She obviously has a lot of deaf friends so I got to communicate with them and really form relationships with them when I was younger. Now that I’ve grown up, I don’t really know too many deaf people. But it still gives me a chance to communicate with my mom (that way).”
Whitlock said in the video that sign language is important to him because of his respect for the deaf community. He said that he approaches people when he sees them signing.
Members from the Rhode Island School for the Deaf were among the visitors at the game on Deaf and Hard of Hearing night, Whitlock said.
“I just kind of approached them and hung out with them for a little bit and signed some autographs and everything like that,” said Whitlock.
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