‘Dale, we know you’re gay.’ How a Major League Baseball umpire me out - Outsports

Contents:

• CELEBRATG LGBTQ SPORTS HISTORY: THE ONLY MLB TEAM WH PLAYERS WHO HAVE E OUT AS GAY
• THE FIRST OPENLY GAY MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL UMPIRE REFLECTS ON G OUT, COORS FIELD AND THE ‘ROBO-UMPIRE’
• 'IT'S ABOUT DAMN TIME FOR THIS:' BRYAN RUBY BE ONLY ACTIVE PRO BASEBALL PLAYER TO BE OUT AS GAY
• 9 BASEBALL PLAYERS WHO CAME OUT AS GAY
• ‘DALE, WE KNOW YOU’RE GAY. WE DON’T RE.’ HOW A MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL UMPIRE ME OUT
• FORMER MAJOR LEAGUE PCHER T.J. HOE OUT AS GAY
• JAGUARS STRENGTH ACH IS FIRST MALE ACH A MAJOR US-BASED PRO LEAGUE TO E OUT AS GAY
• FAMEWATCHER SEARCH PRIMARY MENU SKIP TO NTENT HOMECELEBRY HAIR TRANSPLANTCELEBRY PLASTIC SURGERYCELEBRY LEATHER JACKETBODY SHAPER SEARCH FOR: GAY MALE ATHLET, HOT BASEBALL PLAYERSGAY BASEBALL PLAYERS LIST: MLB AND MOR LEAGUERS

CELEBRATG LGBTQ SPORTS HISTORY: THE ONLY MLB TEAM WH PLAYERS WHO HAVE E OUT AS GAY

Here's a list of those the profsnal and llege baseball world proud enough to wear a rabow p wh their pstrip and e out as gay.

THE FIRST OPENLY GAY MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL UMPIRE REFLECTS ON G OUT, COORS FIELD AND THE ‘ROBO-UMPIRE’

An outfielr for the Los Angel Dodgers and the Oakland A's between 1976 and 1979, Glenn Burke beme the first Major League Baseball player to e out as gay to teammat and owners while still active, though the team asked that he keep his sexualy secret om the public and he plied. Two years later, he told Insi Sports that he believed he'd been let go om the Dodgers bee he was gay.

He beme one of few proment gay athlet of the era after that, playg the Gay Gam 1982 and 1986. "They n't ever say now that a gay man n't play the majors, bee I'm a gay man and I ma , " he told The Philalphia Inquirer. @billybeanballThe only livg Major League Baseball veteran who has e out as gay, outfielr Billy Bean played for the Tigers, Dodgers, and Padr over a reer that spanned om 1987 to 1995.

He me out four years after retirg om the field, and wrote his 2003 book Gog the Other Way: Lsons From a Life and Out of Major League Baseball that the bullyg and homophobic world of baseball led him to walk away om pro ball. "Beg gay don't change anythg about the way I play or teract wh teammat, " he said a team statement released for Pri Month. @_DavidD_41A first baseman for the Helena Brewers, rhe Milwkee Brewers' rookie affiliate team Montana, David Denson 2015 beme the first player affiliated wh Major League Baseball to e out as gay.

'IT'S ABOUT DAMN TIME FOR THIS:' BRYAN RUBY BE ONLY ACTIVE PRO BASEBALL PLAYER TO BE OUT AS GAY

@DunngtonTylerA pcher for rookie and Class A teams affiliated wh the Cardals 2014, Dunngton told Outsports he left pro ball bee of homophobia. "I experienced both ach and players make remarks on killg gay people durg my time baseball, and each ment felt like a knife to my heart, " he said. Durg an 11-year mor league reer, John Dillger would vis bear gathergs on the road but kept his gay sexualy secret up until his retirement 2005.

9 BASEBALL PLAYERS WHO CAME OUT AS GAY

@tampaMarkJWhen Mark Johnson and teammat won a champnship for the Universy of Tampa 1998, he still was nial about his gay sexualy, he told Outsports, but he beme more nfint over his adult life. When Tyson Lk, director of baseball operatns at the Universy of South Carola, cid on Natnal Comg Out Day 2016 to publicly reveal he was gay, he beme the first person Divisn I llege baseball to ever e out as LGBT.

An umpire for Major League Baseball most notable for a rather famo row wh Pete Rose, Dave Pallone would eventually be ducted to the first class of the Natnal Gay and Lbian Sports Hall of Fame.

He later wrote his 1990 memoir Behd the Mask: My Double Life Baseball that he believed he was fired bee he was gay.

‘DALE, WE KNOW YOU’RE GAY. WE DON’T RE.’ HOW A MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL UMPIRE ME OUT

A Major League Baseball umpire om 1986 to 1999, Dale Stt me out as gay to Referee Magaze 2014. Today, as the Los Angel Dodgers prepare to play the World Seri agast the Tampa Bay Rays, -founr Jim Buzski remds that the Dodgers anchise is a part of LGBTQ sports history as havg the only two MLB players who ever were public about beg gay.

In the history of Major League Baseball, there have been only two players who have e out as gay: Glenn Burke and Billy Bean. Burke, while never publicly out wh the media while playg, did nothg to hi the fact to his teammat that he was gay. Not a “Hey world, I’m gay” way, but the sense that his teammat knew as did the management of the Los Angel Dodgers, Burke’s first team.

” A memorable moment “Out” occurs when is relled that the Dodgers — tryg to stifle mors that a popular player was gay — offered Burke $75, 000 to get married.

FORMER MAJOR LEAGUE PCHER T.J. HOE OUT AS GAY

The Dodgers and their manager, Tom Lasorda, prented a versn of themselv as a clean-cut, All-Amerin team and a flamboyantly gay player uld not be tolerated, pecially one who hung out wh Lasorda’s gay son. “Spunky” Lasorda later died of AIDS and his father shamefully never acknowledged that his son was gay.

A former Burke teammate Clll Washgton rells that A’s Manager Billy Mart was openly homophobic:.

Burke went on to settle San Francis and was a fixture on the gay scene there, even playg the Gay Gam softball. While baseball is still wag for s first openly gay active MLB player, Bean’s elevatn to a posn of thory the missner’s office is a sign that thgs have changed sce the days when Glenn Burke was lled a faggot by his manager. Amir Garrett, the new closer, beme a muny hero when he publicly nounced the Reds former TV announcer who ma anti-gay ments on air.

JAGUARS STRENGTH ACH IS FIRST MALE ACH A MAJOR US-BASED PRO LEAGUE TO E OUT AS GAY

In 2014, Dale Stt beme the first active Major League Baseball umpire to e out as gay.

FAMEWATCHER SEARCH PRIMARY MENU SKIP TO NTENT HOMECELEBRY HAIR TRANSPLANTCELEBRY PLASTIC SURGERYCELEBRY LEATHER JACKETBODY SHAPER SEARCH FOR: GAY MALE ATHLET, HOT BASEBALL PLAYERSGAY BASEBALL PLAYERS LIST: MLB AND MOR LEAGUERS

Stt was ducted to the Natnal Gay and Lbian Sports Hall of Fame 2015 and has sce wrten a memoir about his reer. On the rponse he’s gotten om the gay muny after umpirg the majors for more than three s and penng a memoir “The Umpire is Out: Callg the Game and Livg My Te Self”: SCOTT: The people I’ve talked to on this book tour, tellg me my story changed their life, my story gave them the urage to do this, or … this one lbian uple San Francis, she was, I gave her a big hug bee she said, “You don’t know how much hearg about you a game I love …” and that kd of stuff. Yet 's Ruby's hidn part of his inty that he now believ n have the biggt impact, partially bee 's so foreign to the worlds of baseball and untry is a gay man, the only active profsnal baseball player at any level to be publicly out.

" FOLLOW THE MONEY: MLB player salari and payrolls for every major league teamHis g out follows a summer which Las Vegas Rairs fensive end Carl Nassib and Nashville Predators prospect Le Prokop also me out as gay.

“As a untry mic songwrer, at first I thought beg gay was a huge weakns, ” said Ruby, who will be showsed the upg documentary, "Out Nashville. ”Ruby told his fay and close iends he was gay four years ago, then his teammat this summer. "When Bryan told me he was gay I was shocked actually, " Lren Ruby said of the revelatn when Bryan was 21.