More
than
1,100
gay
and
lesbian
sports
fans
turned
out
at
RFK
Stadium
Tuesday
night
to
see
the
Washington
Nationals
shut
out
the
Colorado
Rockies.
Taking
over
a
large
section
of
seats
in
the
upper
deck
behind
home
plate,
the
jubilant
participants
in
the
city’s
first
gay
“Night
Out”
at
the
ballpark
basked
in
the
Nationals’
4-0
victory,
with
some
boasting
that
their
presence
helped
break
a
losing
streak
that
threatened
to
end
the
team’s
hold
on
first
place.
“It’s
awesome,”
said
Brent
Minor,
president
of
Team
D.C.,
an
umbrella
organization
of
gay
and
lesbian
sports
teams
that
sponsored
the
gay
Night
Out
event.
“We
didn’t
even
know
if
we’d
sell
the
first
150
tickets,”
Minor
said,
while
standing
on
the
field
before
the
game.
“We
are
stunned.
We
have
over
1,100
people
here.”
The
stadium
announcer
introduced
Minor
and
Team
D.C.
board
member
Mike
Stebbins
during
a
brief
ceremony
on
the
field
before
the
start
of
the
game.
At
least
seven
Major
League
Baseball
teams
were
scheduled
to
host
a
“gay
night”
event
this
year
at
their
respective
stadiums.
In
the
case
of
the
Washington
Nationals,
Team
D.C.
took
part
in
the
Nationals’
group
sales
program,
which
encourages
civic,
sports,
and
other
D.C.
area
groups
to
buy
a
block
of
tickets
at
a
discounted
price.
Although
the
Nationals
didn’t
officially
sponsor
the
gay
night
event,
Nationals
spokesperson
Chartese
Berry
said
the
team
welcomed
Team
D.C.’s
involvement
in
the
group
sales
program
and
provided
the
gay
sports
group
with
the
same
privileges
and
recognition
accorded
all
other
groups
that
sell
a
large
block
of
tickets.
The
privileges
included
the
ceremony
introducing
Minor
and
Stebbins,
which
took
place
on
the
field
behind
home
plate.
The
ceremony
began
with
an
announcement
of
Team
D.C.’s
presence
over
the
stadium’s
public
address
system.
Stadium
officials
also
projected
the
Team
D.C.
name
on
the
stadium’s
large
scoreboard
and
broadcast
the
ceremony
on
a
large
television
screen,
but
incorrectly
listed
the
group
as
“D.C.
Team.”
“We
call
your
attention
to
the
field,”
said
the
announcer.
He
described
Minor
and
Stebbins
as
representatives
of
Team
D.C.,
and
said
the
group
represents
“gay
and
lesbian
sports
clubs.”
A
few
boos
could
be
heard
from
nearby
seats.
But
most
of
the
sparse
crowd
cheered
politely
as
Minor
and
Stebbins
waved
their
arms
in
recognition
of
the
introduction.
The
ceremony
took
place
about
6:40
p.m.,
at
a
time
when
most
of
the
announced
crowd
of
30,655
had
not
arrived
for
the
game,
which
was
scheduled
to
begin
at
7:05
p.m.
The
sections
in
the
upper
deck
where
the
gay
fans
were
seated
were
mostly
empty
during
the
ceremony.
That
didn’t
faze
Minor,
who
called
the
event
historic
for
D.C.’s
gay
sports
fans.
“They
welcomed
us
here
with
open
arms,”
he
said
of
the
Washington
Nationals’
staff
and
public
affairs
office.
“It’s
a
great
night
for
baseball,
a
great
night
for
Washington,
and
a
great
night
for
Team
D.C.”
Among
those
attending
with
gay
fans
were
D.C.
Councilmember
Carol
Schwartz
(R-At-Large)
and
Montgomery
County
Councilmember
Howie
Denis
(R-At-Large).
“Let
it
be
known
that
the
only
two
elected
officials
here
tonight
are
Republicans,”
Schwartz
said.
D.C.
Mayor
Anthony
Williams
(D),
who
was
in
Hawaii
this
week,
turned
over
use
of
the
mayor’s
front-row,
mezzanine-level
box
seating
area
to
Team
D.C.
for
the
event,
said
Clark
Ray,
a
gay
member
of
the
D.C.
Sports
&
Entertainment
Commission,
which
manages
RFK
Stadium.
Bree
Wagner,
director
of
group
sales
for
the
Nationals,
said
that
as
of
Tuesday
morning,
1,139
people
bought
tickets
for
Team
D.C.’s
gay
‘Night
Out’
event.
She
said
an
association
of
Little
League
teams
sold
8,000
seats
for
a
single
game
and
the
Washington
Post
hosted
an
event
that
sold
about
6,000
seats,
making
those
two
events
the
largest
of
the
group
sales
so
far.
But
she
called
the
Team
D.C.
event
“highly
successful”
for
breaking
the
1,000
ticket
mark.
