Michael Young: ‘I guarantee you I’ve had a gay teammate’

Missouri defensive end Michael Sam’s announcement that he is gay has put a spotlight on locker rooms around the country. Retired Texas Rangers legend Michael Young was asked about his experiences in the club house and while he said he hasn’t played with an openly gay teammate, he guarantees he has had a gay teammate.

“No, I haven’t but I guarantee you I’ve had a gay teammate,” Young said on ESPN Radio in Dallas, via the Dallas Morning News. “I think everyone is living in fantasy land if they (think otherwise). This may be the first openly gay player in the NFL but clearly we know there have been tons in every sport. Male, female, there have been tons in every sport. We just don’t know about them or who they are. They’re out there right now. They’re out there in the NBA, in the NHL, in the big leagues and in the NFL. Hopefully players are just comfortable being themselves.”

If Young had an openly gay teammate, he thinks it would’ve gone over fine.

“I think it would’ve went over fine. The biggest thing is, ‘Can this guy help us win?’ Looking at the (Michael Sam) story the thing that amazes me the most is everyone in the football program knew in August. That’s pretty amazing. Clearly it didn’t stop them from having a fantastic season as a team and for him being SEC defensive player of the year and having a great season himself. Obviously this has nothing to do with creating a winning environment and if a college program can pull it off you’d like to think a bunch of paid professionals can do the same. For me it comes down to, ‘Can this guy helps us win? Is he a winning piece? Can he execute on the field and be a good teammate in the locker room.’ I’d like to think it wouldn’t be an issue at all and all the teams I played on I know it definitely wouldn’t have been an issue. It would’ve come down to, ‘Is this guy accountable? Is he responsible? Is he willing to have his teammates’ backs? Can he go out there and do his job well?’