Don’t be gay.

As a child, Jennifer Adams heard her sister tell her multiple times how hard it was growing up as a lesbian in the United States. If she were to sum it up, she’d do it with those three words.

When the Orioles listed the opportunity for one of 15,000 Pride jerseys, she and her son, Skye, jumped at the chance. Even if it meant arriving at Camden Yards nearly two hours before the game.

As they sat in their seats watching the game, two Pride jerseys lay hastily folded on the concrete floor of the third concourse next to a clear purse.

“It helps to show solidarity, feel great in something that is peaceful,” Jennifer Adams, 53, said. “There’s no hate here.”

The Orioles held their sixth annual Pride Night during Wednesday’s games against the Rangers. For the second year in a row, Baltimore held off until Texas came to town.

Coincidence? Perhaps.

But the irony made a small smile spread across Skye Adams’ face as his mom brought up the Orioles’ scheduling decision.

“Apparently, they are one of the few teams who are not celebrating Pride Night,” Jennifer Adams said. “So this is kind of fitting. We wanted to show our support.”

The Rangers are the only team in MLB without a specific Pride-themed game. The team has supported LGBTQ+ organizations in Texas, but its absence from the rest of the league’s events creates news stories each June.

The Adamses are no strangers to more conservative beliefs about the queer community. The family lived in Ohio and Florida before Jennifer settled in Fallston.

Skye Adams, 24, identifies as aroace, a shorthand term for being aromantic and asexual. In other words, he doesn’t necessarily experience romantic or sexual feelings toward partners.

His family has always been openly supportive of his identity — his mom brought a rainbow-covered umbrella to block out the blazing sun.

“I didn’t have [an], ‘Oh no. I have to, like, tell my parents,’” he said, turning to his mom. “That was not at all my experience. It was just literally one day being like, by the way this, and you’re like, ‘Oh yeah, I knew it.’”

However, the community around him hasn’t always been as welcoming.

He attended Florida State University. In Tallahassee, he participated in queer-focused protests closer to the Capitol, about a mile from campus.

Tallahassee has pockets of queer-friendly spaces, but it’s not nearly as welcoming to the LGBTQ+ community as the greater Baltimore community, he said.

Skye Adams moved to Baltimore two months ago to take a job with the Baltimore Police Department’s evidence team. He attended his first Pride event, Baltimore’s Pride Parade, June 14 as part of the Police Department’s queer festivities.

“Seeing just like a whole mile, both sides people cheering and having face paint on and flags — and younger people too — it was really refreshing," he said.

It’s only the duo’s third baseball game ever. Despite the heat, they were enjoying it, the two said.

The world has changed dramatically in some aspects since Adams’ sister told her not to be gay. Obergefell v. Hodges legalized same-sex marriage across the country in 2015. A record amount of queer athletes participated in the 2024 Paris Olympics.

And, for the Adamses, an offer of Orioles Pride jerseys was too good to pass up.

“It’s definitely more open, of course, more pride,” Jennifer Adams said. “And that’s a good word for it: pride. You’re proud of who you are and proud of your family members. Just be yourself.”

If the numerous rainbow-colored hats, fans and flags are any indication, Jennifer Adams’ words ring true for more than just her son.