Just when the Toronto Blue Jays probably thought things couldn't get any worse for them this season, a potentially homophobic message written in Yunel Escobar's eye black for Saturday's game against the Boston Red Sox has created a media firestorm.
The inflammatory phrase in Escobar's eye black was brought to light on Monday by Blue Jays season ticket-holder James Greenhalgh, who snapped a close-up shot of Escobar's face during the weekend contest, and posted it on his Flickr account. The 29-year-old shortstop's eye black - which is a type of sticker employed to reduce the sun's glare - fashioned the message "TU ERE MARICON" which can be translated as "You are a gay."