Roland Fanning was in hot water. It’s a good reason for being thirsty. And because of this, the manager of the Austin Peay Governors baseball team is attracting all kinds of news coverage.
The attention isn’t over him getting ejected from yesterday’s game against Liberty University. Nor is the story newsworthy for how or why Roland Fanning found himself being tossed.
Roland Fanning is going viral because of what he was doing while getting ejected.
When the umpire tossed him from the game, he was on the field. The unusual part is he was guzzling a 2-liter bottle of Mountain Dew at the time.
Other angry skippers have made highlights reels for kicking dirt. The arguments of yelling nose to nose with members of the officiating crew also makes news coverage. And lest we forget the out of control trashing dugouts and throwing things on the field. There’s always an audience for that.
But doing the dew? This is new.
Baseball fans and everyday folks are eating up this unique ejection.
What was Roland Fanning thinking and doing? Was he quenching his thirst? Perhaps getting his caffeine fix? Or maybe he was creatively showing how highly (or lowly) he regarded the situation.
The look on the umpire’s face in the photo above is classic. Isn’t it?
Football now has a 15-yard penalty when someone is called for taunting the opposing team. Meanwhile, baseball hasn’t changed. Pitchers intentionally throwing at or near a chosen hitter is the most common process for payback.
That’s exactly what happened here with Nathan Keeter. Austin Peay was hot about the Flames’ pitcher celebrating hitting his first inning home run a little too much. So, his next time up to bat, Keeter was sent a message.
Usually, the aggressive pitcher gets thrown out. This time, Austin Peay also lost its catcher and manager after the officiating crew ruled the high, wild pitch was a deliberate act.
As he was leaving the game, Roland Fanning even gave a Fun tip of the bottle. His team didn’t cry over spilled milk or soda. The Governors rallied, winning the game by a football-like score of 18 to 15.
But maybe there is an even bigger score on the horizon for the first-year manager.
Quite possibly these days, Roland Fanning could now be in line for a NIL deal. Of course, it would help to be seen guzzling Mountain Dew during future baseball games.
Such a sponsorship arrangement would surely quench the thirst of the Pepsi Beverages Company or a local distributor in Tennessee. College students at Austin Peay are prime customers for doing the dew.
As always, Fun is Good.
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