While watching my favorite baseball team, the San Diego Padres, on MLBTV Saturday night, what was happening on the field became secondary to what was happening in the announcer's booth. Announcing the game for the New York fans was Gary Cohen and Keith Hernandez.
Mike Piazza had just hit a homerun against his former team, the New York Mets. The camera followed his trot all the way back to the dugout where all of his teammates congratulated him including one with long brown hair.
Hernandez (excitedly): "Who's the girl in the dugout with the long hair? What's going on here? You gotta' be kidding me."
The girl with the long brown hair was Kelly Calabrese, in her third season as the Padres' massage therapist and the first female to be employed full time in a major league training room.
Hernandez: "We'll get back to her. I'm not through with her."
He wasn't through with her or all of California, for that matter. He seemed absolutely shocked that a woman would be in the dugout. When informed of who she was and what her job was he added:
Hernandez: "I thought she was Morganna (referring to the woman who for more than two decades became baseball's unofficial mascot by jumping onto fields and kissing unsuspecting players) for a minute, but she wasn't a blonde. . . . I won't say women belong in the kitchen, but they don't belong in the dugout. Only in California."
So in one breath, sexism in America and east coast snobbery remains intact. I guess he couldn't find any gays to bash.
In perusing the New York Times, his remarks appear to have been ignored. Articles did go out in the San Diego Union and The Sporting News.
For the article posted in the San Diego paper click the link below:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20060424/news_1s24graney.html
rate
email
print
link to this page
Comments: 42
So in one breath, sexism in America and east coast snobbery remains intact.
Hey now, lets seperate sexism and snobbery. While I admit the East Coast may be somewhat snobish, the rest of the country is just as well, in their own way.
Comment Two: Don, to each their opinion. I am not one to tell someone they are wrong, because I may not be right. But that being said . . . I am going to stand on the other side of the room. Near the snacks.
And cook me some eggs...
Cohen: "There's only trouble brewing if you say that, you know."
Hernandez: "You know I am only teasing. I love you gals out there. I always have. . . . Only in California. I just can't believe it. You think you've seen everything and, you know, there's always something new."
Then came the fifth inning – after the station undoubtedly received countless calls and e-mails demanding to know when Rush Limbaugh was hired as lead analyst – and the subject was revisited:
Hernandez: "I know I made some strong statements that she didn't belong in the dugout. I stand by those statements. I think it's a man's game."
Donald, as far as your comment is concerned, I think you're a little confused. It is really not relevant to the article. This girl is not ad libbing on the side lines as a commentator. It doesn't mention that in Stephen's article or the article you can link to. She is a qualified massage therapist who these players personally say that many of them would not have seen the field without her. She simply offered congratulations to the player. She wasn't pretending to give advise on how to play the game. So what does that have to do with women commentating sports?
I'm not going to respond to Liberals Suck's comment because that is exactly what he is wanting someone to do.
Great article Stephen. Glad to see your own our side!!
Stephen, Kind Words? Are you trying to be sarcasstic?
Anyway, when you're lousy at what you do, you make headlines any way you can. Hernandez did just that.
Aside (not so sotto voce): "East coast bias" is a west coast myth. People are people, people.
What will be interesting is to see if he loses his gig with the "Just for Men" haircolor people.