Ex-big leaguer Bean feels right being 'out'

The Orange County Register ^ | June 23, 2003 | Keith Sharon

[EveningStar]

[Billy Bean] is the second ex-baseball player to admit publicly that he is gay. Glenn Burke, a former Dodger, died in 1995 of AIDS-related illness after a post-baseball life of homelessness and anger. Bean is a healthy, happy, articulate spokesman.

[presidio9]

Thuper!

[presidio9]

Thuper!

[Alberta's Child]

Is he a pitcher, or a catcher?

[NeoCaveman]

Was he a switch hitter?

[cincinnati65]

From the thound of this guy's thtath, it thounds like he wath a minor leaguer, pothing ath a major leaguer.

[TommyDale]

They "played together" with the Oakland A's.

[martin_fierro]

No beanball jokes, please.

[Michael.SF.]

Quoting from the article:

Bean's book chronicles a baseball career that imploded after years of lying and hiding and denying his feelings. Leaving the baseball life he loved ... was the price Bean paid to become comfortable in his own skin.

After a high school career in which he led Santa Ana High to the CIF baseball title in 1982, followed by a great college campaign for which his number was retired at Loyola Marymount University, Bean was a big league bench warmer. In six seasons with the Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres, he never hit higher than .260 and never made more than $300,000.

A bench warmer for six years, never hit higher then .260?

Not much of an implosion. File this one under ...... "who cares."

[presidio9]

Don Baylor hold the record for most times "hit by a pitch." Who has had the most balls hit his chin?

[martin_fierro]

Billy Bean

STILL got doubts about this guy.

[martin_fierro]

ROFL!!!

[presidio9]

The jury's still out on Piazza, but Robbie Alomar is definitely a fruit.

[OldFriend]

Why do you care? Guess you have a certain interest in who is and who isn't???????

[F16Fighter]

He looks just so fine (flaming lisp inferered).

[nickcarraway]

ping

[Uncle Miltie]

Forget homosexuals. We need to ask why so few Asians are in the Big Leagues. An Affirmative Action policy must be implemented immediately, or the proper diversity which we all value will not have been achieved. The relative slowness, lack of strength, practice or will is not important when the rainbow is at risk!

- The Supremes

[F16Fighter]

The most poignant moment of his [Bean's] "out" life came when he met Judy Shepard, whose son, Matthew, was beaten to death for being gay.

"If more people like Bean came forward," she explained, "people like those who killed her son might learn to be more open-minded."

Just so we understand Ms. Shepard's supposed rationale here -- IF more professional athletes proclaimed their "gayness" publicly, THEN maybe backwoods Neanderthals might NOT act like murderous thugs??

No, absolutely NO agenda based on absurd analogies intended here...

[TheBigB]

Who has had the most balls hit his chin?

Liberace.

[CaptRon]

Then he is NOT the Billy Bean who is the GM of the Oakland As. I've been wondering about that.