Hello, and welcome to the Sick, Sad World of Sports, a reminder that sports figures are human, and as such, are no more or less prone to fallibility than the rest of us. Everyone makes mistakes, but often fans overlook a misdemeanor or even a felony, because sports are supposed to be an escape.
It’s a place where people can shut off their brains for a couple of hours a day, and simply be happy tracking a ball. Never mind those fans brawling in the concourse, the sex offender taking the mound, or the supporters who let the direction of “their” organization affect their livelihoods.
Have a mental illness? Not on the court you don’t; that’s just called being soft, and if you have a breakdown, hopefully, you possess enough value that your employers check you into rehab instead of flat-out waiving your ass.
So each month Deadspin will be running what is essentially an incident blotter for sports. Coaches, players, fans, owners, schools — anyone tangentially tied to the industry is fair game to remind folks just how desensitized they are. Ideally, this both serves a journalistic purpose and pulls at your macabre strings.
Some of the stories are horrible (so trigger warning), some are sad, and a couple are IDIOT OF THE MONTH-worthy, but all serve to tear down the facade that perfectly produced highlight packages are nature’s antidepressants. I would say enjoy, but that’s not the point of this exercise, so… enter at your own risk?
