Eric Bach is an openly gay broadster for the Frericksburg Natnals. He has major league aspiratns, but his path has been much lonelier than he would prefer.
Contents:
- CELEBRATG LGBTQ SPORTS HISTORY: THE ONLY MLB TEAM WH PLAYERS WHO HAVE E OUT AS GAY
- FORMER BLUE JAYS, INDIANS PCHER T.J. HOE OUT AS GAY
- TORONTO BLUE JAYS SAY BASEBALL READY FOR OPENLY GAY PLAYER
CELEBRATG LGBTQ SPORTS HISTORY: THE ONLY MLB TEAM WH PLAYERS WHO HAVE E OUT AS GAY
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. Dodgers have had Major League Baseball’s only 2 openly gay players. 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.
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’), himself a gay man and the son of the team’s manager, Tommy Lasorda. “Spunky” Lasorda later died of AIDS and his father shamefully never acknowledged that his son was gay.
FORMER BLUE JAYS, INDIANS PCHER T.J. HOE OUT AS GAY
“My son wasn’t gay. His beg gay was known and players were reluctant to shower wh him. 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.
TORONTO BLUE JAYS SAY BASEBALL READY FOR OPENLY GAY PLAYER
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. Hoe me out as gay last week an emotnal msage posted to his personal Facebook acunt that also announced his engagement to parter Ryan, who spent parts of four seasons the majors, tailed his stggl as a closeted gay man and how he ed his profsn as a mask of sorts. 44 ERA over 29 is the third former major leaguer to e out as gay, followg Billy Bean and Glenn om Yahoo Sports.
Yet, Sean Addis, a gay man and longtime Blue Jays fan, found himself stg the 500 sectn at the Rogers Centre ahead of Friday’s Pri Weekend ftivi. She remembers when former players Yunel Esbar and Kev Pillar were volved homophobic cints.