LOS ANGELES - The Los Angeles Dodgers will play host to their sixth annual LGBT Night at Dodger Stadium on Friday, June 8 (vs. ATL, 7:10 p.m.), the team announced today. A special event ticket package that includes a game ticket for the Dodgers' June 8 game and an exclusive Dodger three-quarter sleeve LGBT Shirt is available for purchase now by visiting www.dodgers.com/LAPride.
For the second consecutive year, the Dodgers have partnered with LA Pride (lapride.org) and will host the official 2018 LA Pride kickoff party at Dodger Stadium beginning at 5:30 p.m. in the Right Field Plaza Bar and lasting until first pitch at 7:10 p.m. Produced by non-profit organization Christopher Street West, LA Pride is Southern California's biggest LGBTQ+ celebration, with the LA Pride Festival and LA Pride Parade taking place in West Hollywood on the weekend of June 9-10. This annual celebration, underscored by this year's powerful and deeply personal #JUSTBE theme, celebrates the LGBTQ+ community and its straight allies through music, art, and culture along with community activations and signature events.
LGBT Night at Dodger Stadium will feature a ceremonial first pitch by former Major League Baseball Umpire Dale Scott. Scott first umpired in the Majors in 1985, and worked nearly 4,000 regular season games. In his career, Scott umpired 91 postseason games, including three World Series, and also three All-Star Games. Long recognized as one of the most respected umpires, Scott was a crew chief for 16 seasons. In December 2014, in a story on Outsports, Scott discussed for the first time being an openly gay umpire, the first in the sport's history.
Other invited guests June 8 include Gus Kenworthy, a triple threat Freeskier, who competes in slopestyle, halfpipe and big air. Kenworthy won the silver medal in men's slopestyle at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. Kenworthy again represented the United States in slopestyle at the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea, where he qualified for the final and finished in 12th place. Kenworthy came out publicly in 2015 and he embraces being a role model and advocate for LGBTQ rights.
Will Hackner will be honored during pregame ceremonies with a Dodgers Community Hero Award. Hackner founded Varsity Gay League in 2007 and it has since grown into an organization reaching the LGBT community in 13 cities across eight states with over 15,000 members. With year-round activities ranging from kickball, dodgeball, beach volleyball, tennis, soccer, bowling and even a trivia game night, Varsity Gay League was founded with one simple goal in mind; to provide inexpensive sports leagues, recreational activities and social events for the LGBT+ community, gender-expansive, and straight allies.
The national anthem will be performed by singer and actor Brian Justin Crum. In 2016, Crum finished fourth on America's Got Talent. Brian came out as gay during elementary school and was picked on by his classmates. With help from his mother, he later gained confidence in exploring a career as a singer.
"We are thrilled to work with so many incredible partners for our sixth annual LGBT Night at Dodger Stadium," said Dodgers' Senior Vice President of Marketing, Communications and Broadcasting Erik Braverman. "I am especially proud of the support from the entire LGBTQ community in Southern California to make the Dodgers Pride Night one of the biggest in all of professional sports. The Dodgers, with a long and well documented history of diversity, recognize the value of an inclusive environment."
The Dodgers will welcome back many partners for this special night, including:
• Outsports, a sports news website focusing on LGBT issues and personalities in amateur and professional sports. Outsports is the world's leading gay-sports publication.
• Varsity Gay League (V.G.L.) is the nations largest LGBT Recreational Sports league, established in 2007. With thousands of members, V.G.L. is committed to connecting players of all ages and skill levels, gay or straight, with new ways to socialize and play. A pregame kickball game with select members of V.G.L. will take place in the outfield following the Dodgers' and Braves' batting practice on June 8.
• The Greater Los Angeles Softball Association (GLASA) is a gay and lesbian slow-pitch softball league committed to providing an opportunity for both gay and non-gay participants to compete in an environment conducive to the gay community.
• GYM Sportsbar, the first and only gay sports bar in Los Angeles.
LGBT Night on June 8 will also include Friday Night Fireworks presented by Denny's and will feature a special music mix by DJ BowieJane. Fans are invited on the field immediately following the game for the fireworks show.
For more information, please visit www.dodgers.com/LAPride.