It
now
appears
that
the
New
York
Mets’
hunky
catcher
is
not
a
switch
hitter
after
all.
The
New
York
Daily
News
reports
that
he
plans
to
marry
his
girlfriend
of
two
years,
former
Playboy
playmate
Alicia
Rickter,
next
weekend
in
Florida,
where
Piazza
owns
a
house
and
a
condo.
It’s
been
a
rocky
road
to
love
for
Piazza,
whose
pretty
boy
good
looks
(and
a
whole
lot
of
fawning
gay
fans)
made
him
the
subject
of
persistent
rumors
that
he
was
out
at
the
ballgame
in
more
than
one
way.
Even
though
former
girlfriend
Darlene
Bernaola,
another
Playboy
playmate,
went
on
the
record
talking
about
their
active
and
fabulous
sex
life,
the
rumors
continued.
It
eventually
got
so
bad
that
he
held
a
news
conference
in
2002
to
tell
everyone
he
wasn’t
playing
for
our
team.
Dish
could
carry
on
the
baseball
metaphors
and
make
jokes
about
how
he’s
definitely
a
catcher,
but
she’s
sick
of
that
trope
already.
Piazza
isn’t
the
first
celeb
to
deny
those
gay
rumors
—
,
and
have
all
done
the
same.
But
he’s
the
first
one
to
actually
hold
a
news
conference
to
announce
it.
With
his
marriage,
I
suppose
we
can
all
put
this
rumor
to
rest.
And
if
this
works,
look
for
hot
Aussie
swimmer
,
who
has
done
everything
in
his
power
to
stop
the
gay
rumors
to
little
effect,
to
be
doing
the
breaststroke
all
the
way
to
the
altar.
Speaking
of
sports
stars,
lesbian
tennis
player
seems
to
be
a
little
upset
at
the
return
of
her
former
rival
.
Hingis,
who
retired
in
2002
after
surgery
on
both
ankles,
recently
entered
a
tennis
tournament
in
Thailand
and
seems
poised
for
a
comeback.
That’s
not
good
news
for
Mauresmo,
who
briefly
was
ranked
the
No.
1
female
tennis
player
in
the
world
last
year.
In
1999,
former
numero
uno
Hingis
defeated
her
in
the
Australian
Open
and,
to
add
insult
to
injury,
called
Mauresmo
“half
a
man.”
The
Associated
Press
reports
that
at
a
recent
press
conference,
Mauresmo
did
not
react
well
when
asked
about
Hingis’
return.
“I
have
nothing
to
say,
absolutely
nothing
at
all.”
When
the
questioner
persisted,
she
reiterated
“Nothing!”
while
walking
out
of
the
pressroom.
Dish
knows
you’ve
heard
a
lot
about
her
recently,
but
she
can’t
stop
talking
about
her
favorite
home
wrecker,
.
It
seems
as
if
the
relationship
between
the
“Arrested
Development”
star
and
the
lesbian
talk
show
host
(at
the
expense
of
their
respective
long-term
girlfriends)
is
getting
even
stranger.
A
source
told
US
magazine
that
de
Rossi
has
been
at
every
taping
of
DeGeneres’
syndicated
talk
show
since
it
started
shooting
again
on
Jan.
5.
Even
more
annoying,
the
two
communicate
during
the
opening
monologue.
The
source
says,
“Portia
will
mouth,
‘That
was
a
good
one!’
And
Ellen
mouths,
‘Thanks!’”
Showtime
recently
announced
unceremoniously
that
the
fifth
season
of
hit
gay
drama
“”
would
be
the
last
one
for
the
series.
A
rep
for
Showtime
offered
no
explanation,
but
it
returns
to
the
air
this
spring.
Hit
lesbian
drama
“
is
poised
to
return
on
Feb.
20.
Two
weeks
ago,
Showtime
renewed
it
for
a
third,
12-episode
season
before
even
an
episode
of
the
second
season
hit
the
screen.
Now
that’s
girl
power.
