MLB Network to Re-Air Documentary of Late Dodgers Outfielder
MLB Network will re-air the documentary of late Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Billy Bean, who died earlier this week of leukemia at age 60. The documentary, titled “The Story of Billy Bean,” tells the story of Bean hiding his sexuality during his time as a player and how he helped MLB become more inclusive after his career.
The documentary will air on MLB Network at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT on Friday. The documentary originally aired in 2022.
Bean played six seasons of Major League Baseball, and hid that he was gay throughout his baseball career. To do this, Bean went as far as taking girls out on dates, and having drinks with them as he hid his other relationships from everyone.
A Southern California native, Bean played high school baseball at Santa Ana High School before going on to play for Loyola Marymount University.
After his time in college, Bean was a fourth-round pick by the Detroit Tigers in 1986, and made his debut for the team in 1987. Bean was traded to the Dodgers in 1989, where he appeared in for 51 games before getting sent back to the minor leagues, where he played the next two seasons.
Bean then went to play Nippon Professional Baseball, the highest level of baseball in Japan, spending the 1992 season with the Kintetsu Buffaloes. He returned to the United States and joined the San Diego Padres, where he played for three seasons before retiring after the 1995 season.
Following his retirement, Bean began to come out to his friends and family, and publicly came out in 1999 during an interview with Lydia Martin of the Miami Herald. He was just the second player in MLB history to come out as gay, after former Dodger Glenn Burke.
After coming out, Bean helped champion inclusion in MLB. He became MLB’s first Ambassador for Inclusion in 2014, and was later named the league’s senior vice president for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
Over his career, Bean hit .226 with five home runs and 53 RBIs. With the Dodgers, he slashed .197/.250/.254 and played all across the outfield.
Bean is survived by his husband, Greg Baker.
Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
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