OAKLAND — Billy Bean proudly placed a rainbow colored A’s button on his jacket lapel as he stood on the dugout steps at O.co Coliseum on Wednesday.
Now Major League Baseball’s Ambassador for Inclusion, Bean is one of two players in baseball history to have come out as gay after his playing career (joining former A’s outfielder Glenn Burke) and was an invited guest for the A’s Pride Night against the San Diego Padres.
Burke’s brother, Sidney Burke, is throwing out the first pitch and transgender opera singer Breanna Sinclaire is signing the national anthem. According to Out Magazine, Sinclaire is the first transgender woman to sing the anthem at a professional sporting event.