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Come Fan with UsWednesday, June 24, 2026

John Gibbons and Chip Hale have already embarrassed themselves

Wednesday’s Say Hey, Baseball includes managers saying things they’ll regret, Chase Utley slides and the things we know are fact from Opening Day.

Toronto Blue Jays v Tampa Bay Rays
Toronto Blue Jays v Tampa Bay Rays
Photo by Brian Blanco/Getty Images

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It’s a long baseball season, and managers are bound to say some pretty dumb things over the course of it. We’re just days into 2016, though, and both Blue Jays’ manager John Gibbons and the Diamondbacks’ Chip Hale have already said things that they should regret. Hale’s was the kind of thing you should just roll your eyes at, as it came from a manager frustrated at the drubbing of his flu-ridden ace in his debut with the team. Gibbons ... well, we’ll get to that.

Hale was mad at the media for building up anticipation for the D-Backs’ Opening Day. You know, the D-Backs, the team who stole Zack Greinke away from their division rivals, the Dodgers, and traded away loads of young talent -- including 2015’s first-overall draft selection, Dansby Swanson -- to get Shelby Miller into the rotation. Yes, it’s the media’s fault that expectations for Opening Day were so high, Chip, not the actions of your bosses.

As for Gibbons, his frustration came from the umpires overturning pivotal runs scored on an Edwin Encarnacion grounder, as Jose Bautista’s slide was deemed illegal. That’s fine! Be frustrated, as it’s a frustrating moment, even if it was the right call. However, you can be audibly frustrated without resorting to sexism, as Gibbons did when he said, “Maybe we’ll come out and wear dresses tomorrow. Maybe that’s what everybody’s looking for.” Please stop identifying being a woman and anything feminine as a negative. There is literally no reason to go that route, and plenty of ways Gibbons could have expressed himself without needlessly putting down half the population. Maybe Gibbons instantly regretted his choice to go that route, but even then, that’s getting some self-awareness a little late. Do better, John.

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