Rainbow flags fly as baseball shows support for LGBT community
Billy Bean spoke hopefully in Washington, the Athletics eschewed a traditional first pitch for a silent tribute and stadium flag poles featured the gay pride rainbow alongside the stars and stripes.
Major League Baseball on Tuesday honored the victims of the Orlando, Fla., nightclub shooting that left 49 dead.
Moments of silence and other ceremonies were held at stadiums across the country, including in Washington and Oakland, where LGBT pride nights had been planned before the shooting.
Bean, a gay former player and Major League Baseball’s first ambassador of inclusion, was at Nationals Park as Washington hosted its 12th annual Night OUT event during a nationally televised game against the Chicago Cubs. Bean was scheduled to visit with members of the Nationals even before the attack in Orlando.
That’s an image – that’s a new image. That is a powerful one for the LGBT community and one I want to make sure we’re all appreciative of.
Billy Bean
baseball’s ambassador of inclusion, on seeing the rainbow flag flying along with the American Flag at Nationals Park“Everyone’s heart in baseball was broken on Sunday morning,” Bean said. “It doesn’t matter who it happened to. It was a terrible, terrible event in our U.S. history.”
Still, Bean carried an optimistic message, inspired by his own experiences and by what he saw beyond the outfield wall at Nationals Park.
“I turned around and I saw … the (gay) pride flag underneath the American flag,” Bean said. “That’s an image – that’s a new image. That is a powerful one for the LGBT community and one I want to make sure we’re all appreciative of.”
The A’s turned their normally celebratory Pride Night into a sign of solidarity honoring the shooting victims.
Oakland had a somber ceremony in place of a first pitch before playing the Texas Rangers. Pitcher Sean Doolittle and broadcaster Eireann Dolan joined fans in passing a baseball, which Olympic gold medalist and current USF women’s basketball coach Jennifer Azzi placed on the mound as a symbol of remembrance.
The team also passed out A’s pride rainbow headbands as fans entered the game, and partial proceeds from each ticket will benefit three local LGBT charities – AIDS Project of the East Bay, Our Space and Rainbow Community Center.
“In our organization, we’re all inclusive, as is the area,” Oakland manager Bob Melvin said. “And to be able to do something like this, especially at this critical time, feels good.
“Baseball is baseball,” he added, “but real life is quite a bit more important, and we’re celebrating that today here.”
Elsewhere, the Rays’ Pride Night was already scheduled for this Friday, and Tampa Bay has made open seats available for $5. All proceeds will benefit the Pulse Victims Fund, which has been set up for the families of the victims. Everyone in attendance will receive a “We Are Orlando” T-shirt.
This story was originally published June 14, 2016 at 8:38 PM with the headline "Rainbow flags fly as baseball shows support for LGBT community."