The Hotlanta Softball team the Georgia Mudcats, not pictured in this file photo of HSL league play, is embroiled in a controversy with a San Francisco team the Mudcats allege had too many straight players during the Gay World Series. (FIle photo)
Too straight to play? Gay Atlanta softball team protests World Series opponent for having too many heterosexuals
When
the
Georgia
Mudcats
lost
to
San
Francisco’s
D2
team
last
month
in
the
semifinals
of
the
Gay
World
Series,
the
Atlanta
team
said
enough
was
enough.
The
Gay
World
Series,
which
took
place
in
Seattle
Aug.
22-30,
featured
almost
180
teams
from
across
the
United
States
and
Canada.
The
Mudcats
placed
second
in
the
highly
competitive
Class
A
division,
but
only
after
the
D2
team
was
disqualified
for
allegedly
having
too
many
heterosexual
players.
Many
people
in
the
gay
softball
world
have
known
the
D2
men’s
softball
team
was
packed
with
more
straight
players
than
allowed
in
the
rules,
according
to
a
Hotlanta
softball
player
interviewed
by
Southern
Voice
last
week.
The
rules
of
the
North
American
Gay
Amateur
Athletic
Association,
of
which
the
Gay
World
Series
is
a
member,
state
only
two
non-gay
players
are
allowed
per
team
in
the
World
Series.
The
Mudcats
protested
their
loss,
alleging
D2
was
breaking
the
rules
by
having
at
least
six
straight
players
on
their
team.
Series
officials
ruled
the
protest
valid
while
D2
was
playing
in
the
championship
game
against
the
Los
Angeles
Vipers.
That
ruling
knocked
D2
out
of
a
second
place
finish
and
put
the
Mudcats
at
No.
2.
“For
years,
it’s
never
been
a
secret
D2
has
too
many
straight
players,”
said
a
Mudcat
player,
who
asked
to
remain
anonymous.
“I’ve
played
on
other
teams
against
D2
and
when
they
put
us
out
of
a
previous
World
Series,
a
friend
said,
‘I
swear
to
God,
I’m
never
going
to
get
put
out
of
the
World
Series
again
by
a
bunch
of
straight
players.’
That’s
what
planted
the
seed
to
get
them
the
hell
out
of
there.”
The
coaches
of
the
Mudcats,
as
well
as
Hotlanta
Softball
Commissioner
Rick
McCracken,
did
not
respond
to
repeated
requests
for
interviews.
Southern
Voice
agreed
to
allow
the
Mudcat
player
to
speak
anonymously
because
he
said
he
did
not
have
permission
from
the
league
or
coaches
to
speak,
but
he
wanted
the
team’s
side
of
the
story
to
be
heard.
“We
do
let
straight
people
play.
But
[D2]
brings
in
ringers
and
it’s
just
unfair
for
the
gay
players.
This
is
ours,”
said
the
Atlanta
player.
“If
we
wanted
to
play
against
a
straight
team,
we
could’ve
stayed
home
and
not
flown
across
the
country
to
play
in
the
Gay
World
Series.
“It’s
not
that
they
[straight
players]
are
better
—
it’s
the
principle
of
the
matter.
They
were
flat
out
breaking
the
rules.”
To
make
a
protest,
the
Mudcats
had
to
submit
the
number
of
players
and
jersey
numbers
of
the
D2
players
they
believed
were
straight.
D2
APPEALS
DECISION
When
NAGAAA
Commissioner
Roy
Melani
was
reached
on
his
personal
cell
phone
two
weeks
ago,
he
shouted,
“No
comment!
How
did
you
get
this
number?
This
is
my
personal
number!
I
have
no
comment!”
San
Francisco
Gay
Softball
League
Commissioner
Vincent
Fuqua
said
last
week
he
was
filing
a
protest
with
NAGAAA
to
be
completed
by
Sept.
30.
“They
filed
the
protest
after
they
lost,”
he
said
of
the
Mudcats.
When
asked
how
the
Atlanta
team
knew
D2
had
straight
players,
Fuqua
answered,
“That’s
a
good
question.”
“From
my
understanding,”
he
added,
“I’ve
not
heard
of
anyone
being
disqualified
for
the
non-gay
rule.”
Fuqua
said
he
could
not
comment
further
because
of
the
ongoing
appeal,
but
said,
“Our
policy
is
to
follow
NAGAAA
rules.”
NAGAAA
rules
specifically
state:
“A
maximum
of
two
heterosexual
players
are
permitted
on
a
[Gay
Softball
World
Series]
roster.”
The
Mudcat
player
said
it’s
an
open
secret
that
D2
has
always
gone
to
the
Gay
World
Series
with
more
than
two
straight
players,
but
teams
have
been
too
intimidated
in
the
past
to
protest.
“They
carry
their
friggin’
wives
to
the
ball
fields.
They
don’t
go
to
gay
bars.
We
don’t
know
them.
I
even
talked
to
one
of
the
[D2]
players
before
and
he
said,
‘How
can
you
prove
it?
You
have
to
prove
it
[that
we’re
straight].’
“Don’t
get
me
wrong.
I
have
nothing
wrong
with
straight
players.
We
have
two
wonderful
straight
guys
on
our
team,”
said
the
Mudcat
player.
“But
many
gay
teams
playing
by
the
rules
have
been
put
out
of
the
series
by
these
guys.
And
they’re
breaking
the
rules.
They
got
caught
this
time.”
The
controversy
was
first
reported
in
the
Bay
Area
Reporter.
AN
ISSUE
FOR
YEARS?
In
a
Sept.
18
article,
D2
player
George
Lee
described
what
happened
after
the
protest
was
filed,
saying
after
the
game
with
the
Vipers
was
finished,
the
team
and
coaches
had
to
meet
with
the
NAGAAA
board.
“They
proceeded
to
read
out
of
the
NAGAAA
rules
and
...
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