Willie Mays is Turning Over in his Grave... Alexi Pappas throw out first pitch at San Francisco Giants game

Yeah Logan Webb has been an absolute dawg on the hill lately.

Alexi gets a disproportionate amount of hate on here and I say this as someone who doesn’t like her all that much

lots of people throw out first pitches. It’s really nbd. Alexi has a pathological need for attention that she has addressed in her book, which is due to significant trauma. No one is required to give her that attention

Why would Willie Mays care about this?

There were old timers turning in their graves when they let the likes of Willie Mays even play at all.

First, Willie Mays is NOT DEAD. He's 92, and still alive and kicking.

Second, Alexi Pappas seems like a very interesting person. Perhaps you should write a letter to my favorite baseball team, the San Francisco Giants, and tell them how upset you are. Cry me a river!!

Why would Willie Mays be worrying about who's throwing out the first pitch at a MLB game?

Serious question.

Have you ever had a girlfriend?

Have you ever been laid?

Have you gotten laid in past 10 years?

Have you broken 3:00 for the 800m?

Would you call yourself an “Incel”?

He doesn’t really follow sports. He enjoys catching a glimpse of dudes in the shower afterwards though.

What the hell does “bravey” mean?

Do you think she calls her dad Pappaspappa? That would be kinda cool.

Honestly didn’t know who she was, but quick, how many Olympics did you compete in and what’s your highest place in aforementioned Olympics?

Seems like she’s accomplished at least enough to merit throwing out a first pitch at a random game. I was expecting it to be like some teen mom or tik-tok person.

For clarification, yes, I know Willie is still alive. Subtle humor is lost on many LRC user.
For the record, I have no personal animosity or enmity against Alexi. There is a high probability she is a fun and engaging person to be friends with. However, her online persona and what her online representation of some version of herself portrays is what I find disconcerting on many levels. This ever-growing Social Media Influencer culture is at the heart of my criticism. The expansion of the celebrity culture and their cult of followers to include so many less than exemplary personalities is disturbing and helps distort reality amongst many groups, especially the young. Because Alexi targets a demographic she calls “braveys” which comprises many teen girls, she is directly impacting the lives of these impressionable minds. The reason I continue to create posts concerning her is that she began her rise into this world of online celebrity because of running. She continues to be associated with running, yet her level of recent running accomplishments are small and don't merit any but the most modest level of notice especially considering many far more talented runners barely make a living at this often unforgiving sport. Yes, she made it to the Olympics, but she used a loophole to gain entry onto the Greek team. She did not have the level of talent to make a USA team, her country of actual citizenship.

Feel free to attack me for pointing this out, but don’t dismiss my main concern of how Social Media especially when aimed at the youth is having a negative impact on society in general.

It's SF. This is exactly what you would expect.

Have you ever watched a baseball game?

And since I already know the answer is no, why does it matter to you?

I agree that she's turned into an influencer and that she definitely seeks out attention but what is she doing that is so terrible to the impressionable minds of teen girls?

Id be a lot more concerned about teen girls following the likes of Shelby who cheated to get ahead, than Alexi.

Keep in mind, Alexi wrote a book and that book had some pretty relatable stories in it for the demographic she is going for. She's also made a few films, and at the Olympic final she did place ahead of the third American.

I say this as someone who is NOT a fan of Alexi. I find her annoying but your criticism of her is way way way over the top. If girls like her and look up to her for whatever reason I don't see a ton of harm in it. Not everyone has to pass a set standard to be a ROLE MODEL to inspire people.

I saw him driving a big pink Caddy in NYC back in the 70s.

Oh yeah, and his hair was PERFECT!

Three reasons why her online presence is questionable and needs periodic reminders of how it is damaging to those who follow her are:

Running for Greece is a traitorous act to the country of one’s birth.
Amplifying and celebrating narcissism is having a negative impact on society.

Saying you’re brave doesn’t mean you’re brave.

You’re soft, buttercup.

I try to only respond to reasoned, rational, or conceptually witty banter. Most on LRC can’t operate in these spheres of deep thought and communication.