Walk-up music is an excellent way for players to showcase their personalities or convey a message to fans. Some players take it seriously, others not so much.
That is why it was interesting that Mike Clevinger chose the Kanye West song “Gold Digger,” a song about women solely interested in a man’s wealth, to play over the speakers of Guaranteed Rate Field as he walked out from the bullpen before the game.
Over the offseason, Clevinger was subject to an MLB investigation into domestic abuse allegations made by Olivia Finestead, the mother of one of his children. Clevinger vehemently denied any wrongdoing.
In March, the commissioner’s office released a statement saying that the MLB would not discipline Clevinger “in connection with these allegations.”
According to the Chicago Tribune, when asked about this song selection, Clevinger replied, “Are you a music producer? No? OK. Well, if you have a baseball question, I’m here for you.”
Kind of a smug response for someone trying to win over the fanbase of his new team. To his credit, he did pitch well, tossing six scoreless innings despite issuing five walks against the Orioles. He only allowed one hit and struck out five. In three starts this season, the right-hander owns a 2.20 ERA. However, his play on the field still has a black cloud hanging over it due to the negative perception the majority of White Sox fans have of him.
Clevinger’s investigation dominated the headlines at the beginning of Spring Training. It provided yet another distraction for a team that made headlines last season for everything but good play on the field. Part of the Clevinger offseason circus includes Finestead appearing on 670 The Score to do an interview and then Clevinger threatening to sue the radio station as a result.
Flash forward a month later, and Finestead is still trying to drum up attention. On Saturday morning, she posted a screenshot on her Instagram Story of Oscar Colas liking several of her posts, most of which were of her in a swimsuit. She then posted a photo of Colas’s Instagram page on her story with the caption, “Mike get your teammate off my page.”
Between Avisail Garcia, Adam LaRoche, Dallas Keuchel, and now Mike Clevinger, the White Sox clubhouse never ceases to amaze with how they can create soap opera-style drama year in and year out.
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