Billy Bean touched the lives of so many people before the gay former MLB player and executive passed away from leukemia.
Arizona Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo was one of those people.
At a memorial service this week for the deceased Bean, Lovullo paid homage to his baseball-playing friend.
“I’ve been a friend of Billy bean since the Santa Maria summer in 1984,” Lovullo told the crowd of their time playing together in minor league baseball. “That’s when our common denominator, of love for baseball, helped form a deep and genuine friendship.”
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Lovullo skipped the Diamondbacks’ game on Sunday to attend Bean’s memorial service, a powerful message of his love for his friend. Arizona beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 11-10, in the game.
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“Whether I knew what to say, he knew just what to say. He was always present. And when you’re present in gratitude, you cannot be anywhere else.
“This is who Billy Bean was at his core. And everyone needs a Billy Bean in their life.”
After Bean moved into the MLB front office to focus on building inclusion in the league, Lovullo invited him to speak to his team in Arizona, one of a number of managers and clubs to do so.
While MLB is still one of only two pro sports leagues in North America to never have a publicly out gay athlete, Bean’s efforts speaking to clubs and encouraging Pride Nights at ballparks has been lauded by many as important steps for baseball.
“Today MLB is a much better place because of him,” Lovullo said. “May your soul rest in peace, my brother. I love you so much.”
To give some perspective on Lovullo’s decision to miss a game, the Diamondbacks are hanging onto the fifth playoff spot in the NL, by no means a guarantee for the playoffs and simultaneously five games back from the Los Angeles Dodgers for the NL West crown.
