I never thought I would live to see the day where I’d be writing about sports more than all three of my brothers. And yet here we are. Congratulations on being alive, I guess.
So, Yunel Escobar. What happened here? How does the shortstop for the baseball team of one of the most gay-friendly cities in the world go out on the field with “You are a faggot” written on his face? And don’t try and say it’s a bad translation. That dubbed-over version of Let the Right One In was a bad translation. Trying to write off “maricon” as meaning soft and weak men instead of “faggot” is just splitting hairs.
What’s happened so far? He’s been suspended for three games and his earnings from those games are going to GLAAD as well as the You Can Play project (which really is a worthy cause. If you happen to be feeling a little charitable, a donation to them would be lovely.)
What are the odds he had anything to do with that decision? I mean yes, it’s great that the money will go to a good cause, but part of me feels like this is less about a man who did something stupid and is making amends for it out of a legitimate feeling of regret and more about a dumb child who got his toys taken away because he put the family hamster in the microwave.
There’s a difference between damage control and actually rectifying a mistake. Part of me feels like the guy should maybe spend a week reflecting on what he did, rather than spouting off a bunch of talking points in the immediate aftermath. I would hope that if he actually thought long and hard about it, he might come up with a real, honest apology. But right now, it feels like a knee-jerk reaction to his stupidity, and not much about this feels genuine.
And if nothing else, consider this: he used makeup to express himself. How is that not gay?
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