Double-A Baseball Team to Hold 'Runner Up Night' in Wake of Miss Universe Gaffe
December 22, 2015One night after comedian and host Steve Harvey accidentally crowned the wrong contestant as Miss Universe 2015 on Sunday, a minor league baseball team has decided to have fun with the gaffe.
The Frisco RoughRiders, a Double-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers, will hold "Runner Up Night" on April 26, when the club will honor some notable second-place finishers, per Darren Rovell of ESPN.com.
The team has extended invitations to Miss Colombia, Ariadna Gutierrez Arevalo—whom Harvey mistakenly crowned by reading the wrong name—and the comedian himself.
Second-place sports figures who will have a chance to attend the event include Dallas Cowboys running back Darren McFadden—who was a two-time Heisman Trophy runner-up—and the Buffalo Bills of the early 1990s—who went to four straight Super Bowls, only to lose them all.
RoughRiders general manager Jason Dambach said he is still kicking around ideas for the night, including playing host to a beauty pageant in the park. When asked if he would consider awarding the loser of the game with a win that night, Dambach said, "I hadn't thought of that one," per Rovell.
It's a novel idea, as minor league baseball teams are always looking to draw fans to the park who are interested in more than just the product on the field.
While Harvey apologized on stage and took to Twitter to say sorry again, many have taken him to task on social media for his mistake. Perhaps four months will be enough time for Harvey to look back, laugh and enjoy some baseball on a night reserved for those who came up just short.