Do You Pitch or Catch?

We at HOMOPOP never tried to hide that we are based in Philadelphia. And yes, our Philadelphia Phillies are dominating the LA Dodgers in the divisional series 3-1, but that's not why we are bringing up baseball. It hit me last night After our come-from-behind victory that almost every person I was chatting with online was gay. Sharing the thrill of victory or the agony of defeat with fellow homos is an amazing feeling. I seriously did think I was in the closet being gay AND loving sports, or at the very least a minority. I do play softball for a gay league (hysterically mocked in Another Gay Movie), but chatting and tweeting with folks about baseball was really an eye-opening experience for me!

What is the attraction to baseball? For one thing (and it's a vapid one I know), but baseball players are smokin' hot! Just look at Chase Utley—Phillies 2nd baseman, or third baseman for the NY Mets David Wright? I don't know any fag that wouldn't want to spend just one hour alone with either of these two. Baseball players are often-times lean and rugged at the same time! (Phew, I am getting excited just thinking about it!) Hey, if you're into bears then baseball has that covered too. Just look at CC Sabathia from the NY Yankees, and Pat Burrell (former Phillie and now with the Tampa Bay Rays) and his hairy manscaped chest. Then there's cutie and rumored homo Cole Hamels also of the Phils. I mean, I've never seen a straight dude stretch like this have you? But alas he's a sweet guy and our fans really wouldn't care if he was gay as long as he throws strikes. And what about the catcher from the Los Angeles Angels Jeff Mathias? He can catch for me any time. And of course Alex Rodriquez who had a brief stint with Madonna. You can't get any gayer than that my friends! But are good looks the only reason why this sport among masculine sports draws the most gay following? READ MORE

Homophobia is still rampant among sports and very few athletes are speaking out about it, but the sport is taking strides. First is, of course, our gay brethren Billy Bean. He is only the second former major league baseball player to come out of the closet, but it's not all jock straps and smacks on the ass all the time—just look at what someone wrote on one of his baseball cards. The first was Glenn Burke who passed away of AIDS in 1995. But Bean his certainly embraced his gay celebrity with touring the country supporting his book Going the Other Way, and working politically for the Human Rights Campaign and for the Democratic National Committee. Gay, lesbians, Bisexuals and Transsexuals are all thankful for his visiblity.

In recent years, Major League Baseball has welcomed a new generation of LGBT fans, and what is satisfying is that MLB teams are responding to it. Many teams around the league have set up "Gay Days" or "Out Night at the Park" and we salute those teams for reaching out to gay fans everywhere. There's even an all encompassing site that can tell you when your favorite team is having their "Gay" night: GayBaseballDays.com.

To come full circle, baseball is a sport that can be enjoyed by everyone and thankfully homos everywhere are doing so because in the end... it really is about who pitches and catches, right?