74%
Not Bothered by Gay Teammate
By Jim Buzinski
Outsports.com
Nearly
three-quarters of Major League Baseball players surveyed said they
wouldn’t be bothered by having a gay teammate, according to a poll
by the Tribune newspapers.
Tribune, which owns
the Los Angeles Times, Newsday and the Chicago Tribune among others,
surveyed most of pro baseball’s 750 players on a variety of issues.
Perhaps
the most surprisingly result, given the perceived homophobia
in sports was this:
Would it
bother you to have a gay teammate?
No comment - 11% (50 responses)
Yes - 15% (73)
No - 74% (353)
476 total responses
"I'm sure I've had
one at some point," former New York Met and Yankee Robin Ventura
said about playing with a gay teammate. He was echoed in these
comments:
"I had one, Billy
Bean, and I didn't have a problem with it," Texas Rangers pitcher
Doug Brocail said. "Not at all. I've probably had one already," said
Willie Harris of the Chicago White Sox.
The comments by
the players also mirror those spoken by former New York Mets manager
Bobby Valentine, who said in 2002: “I
think most clubhouses could handle it. They’re mature people who
understand all the situations we live with in our society and this
is obviously one of them. … It’s just time to catch up and I think
it can be done seamlessly if it’s the right person or people. …
Let’s get rid of the whispers and let’s be real about this. ...
There will be some distractions and we'll have to get through with
them.”
Salon’s terrific
sports columnist King Kaufman
had an interesting take: Those 74 percent said no to the
question "Would you be bothered?" They didn't say yes to "Would you
support, encourage and be a champion of?" And having one out of four
colleagues "bothered" by your existence doesn't make it easy to go
to work. But it doesn't make it impossible either.
This survey is
positive and suggests that baseball may not be so hostile to a
player who declares himself gay. It may ultimately depend on who
they are and how they go about declaring their orientation. But
Philadelphia Phillies manager Larry Bowa may have it right when he
said: ''I'm sure it would depend on who the player was. If he hits
.340, it probably would be easier than if he hits .220.''
The complete
Tribune survey can be found
here.
Related:
Smoltz Loses a Fan With Gay Marriage Comments
July 14, 2004 |
