During a press conference that streamed live this afternoon on TMZ.com, attorney Gloria Allred and her client, a father of twin 9-year-old girls, accused Atlanta Braves coach Roger McDowell of directing gay slurs at the father during Saturday’s game in San Francisco. McDowell was accused of making a homophobic remark and then using a baseball bat to simulate gay sex. McDowell also allegedly told the father and two other male fans, “Are you three giving it to each other in the a**?” When the father confronted McDowell from the stands, McDowell reportedly responded by saying, “Kids don’t f**king belong at the baseball park” … and then approached the man with a baseball bat, saying, “How much are your teeth worth?”
Soon after the press conference, McDowell apologized for the incident, saying, “I am deeply sorry that I responded to the heckling fans in San Francisco on Saturday. I apologize to everyone for my actions. ”
A rep for the Braves released an additional statement, saying, “We are concerned by these allegations and the behavior described by a witness today. This in no way represents the Braves organization and the conduct we expect of our employees.”
No word yet from Major League Baseball on what actions, if any, will be taken towards McDowell. And no word, either, on what exactly the fans were saying to him. There are of course two sides to every story, so let’s get the full account before we crucify McDowell alone. Have to imagine he didn’t decide to go ballistic for no reason.