Tweet of the Day: Brandon McCarthy takes on the kiss cam

By Apr 19, 2012, 8:50 AM EDT
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I’ve spent a lot of virtual ink talking about the “kiss cam” at ballparks and arenas and the like. I hate it for two reasons: first, it’s kind of stupid. Second — and way more importantly to me — it’s so often employed as a means of spreading casual homophobia. The operator thinks it’s cute to put it on two guys — presumably heterosexual guys — in order to get hoots and hollers from the crowd and to sow homphobic discomfort.

They apparently did it last night at Angels Stadium, because A’s pitcher Brandon McCarty took notice:

 

Damn straight.

Go back to the thread on gay ballplayers yesterday and revisit the comments about how homophobia is still more or less accepted in our culture. If you doubt it, ask yourself how a publicly funded and operated ballpark can still get away with doing a thing, the sole purpose of which is to make tens of thousands of people laugh at the possibility that two men might actually want to kiss. And which encourages straight people to either be humiliated or to pretend to be the part of a minority and to try to act how they think that minority acts in comically exaggerated ways.

It’s pathetic, and I wish ballparks would cut it the hell out.

Roger Clemens will be an analyst for ESPN on opening day

Associated PressMar 23, 2023, 12:09 AM EDT
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Roger Clemens will be an analyst for ESPN when the defending World Series champion Houston Astros host the Chicago White Sox on opening day.

Clemens made four appearances on last year’s KayRod Cast with Michael Kay and Alex Rodriguez. He will be stepping in on March 30 for David Cone, who will be doing the New York Yankees opener against the San Francisco Giants on YES Network.

“Roger has been sort of a friend of ours for the last year, so to speak, he’s in. He’s been engaged, knowledgeable and really present,” said ESPN Vice President of Production Phil Orlins. “You know, whatever past may be, he’s still tremendously engaged and he really brought that every time he was with us.”

Clemens was a seven-time Cy Young winner but his career after baseball has been tainted by allegations of performance-enhancing drug use. He is a Houston native and pitched for the Astros for three seasons.

Orlins said that with the rules changes and pitch clock, it is important to have a pitcher in the booth with Karl Ravech and Eduardo Perez.

“We don’t feel like we have to have the dynamic of Eduardo with a pitcher, but we certainly think that works. Throw in the added factor of rule changes and it is better to have a batter-pitcher perspective,” Orlins said.

Orlins did not say if this would open the door for future opportunities for Clemens as an ESPN analyst.