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SF Giants: FOX graphic mishap confuses David Villar and LaMonte Wade Jr.

A FOX broadcast graphic suggested the network did not know that SF Giants players David Villar and LaMonte Wade Jr. were different people.

Natasha Welingkar

SF Giants: FOX graphic mishap confuses David Villar and LaMonte Wade Jr.
SF Giants: FOX graphic mishap confuses David Villar and LaMonte Wade Jr. /
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It's only the second game of the SF Giants season, but the disrespect from national baseball media has already begun. In their lineup announcement for Saturday's game at Yankees Stadium, FOX Sports displayed third baseman David Villar's photo twice: once for him and once for first baseman LaMonte Wade Jr. 

This is not the first time a national broadcast has made an error attempting to identify a player, and it probably will not be the last, either. As networks react to fans' increasing desire to have more information visually presented to them during game broadcasts, their teams clearly seem to have struggled to keep up with the fact-checking required.

Not only have networks confused players for one another in graphics, they have spelled names incorrectly, and even omitted names entirely, citing "hitter" or "pitcher" where appropriate. 

While it might not seem on the surface that this is a big deal - after all, who among us have not had our names mispronounced or been confused for another colleague in the workplace? It points to a larger issue.

These networks spend (and make) billions of dollars broadcasting professional sports, but often understaff these broadcasts with overworked and underpaid employees who are forced to generate these graphics with little to no staff focused on catching mistakes.

Shouldn't we be setting a higher standard of respect for these professional athletes who've worked for these moments their entire lives? Shouldn't we set the same standard for everyone? Shouldn't national media have a large enough staff to ensure these issues are not so common?

Besides some broader point, though, the SF Giants should have a good joke in the locker room now. With one set of twins (Taylor and Tyler Rogers) already on the roster, David Villar and LaMonte Wade have video evidence that they are even more difficult to differentiate.

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Natasha Welingkar
NATASHA WELINGKAR

Natasha Welingkar (she/her) is a creative marketer, writer, and lifelong Bay Area sports fan. Born to Indian immigrants, she has been obsessed with baseball since infancy, picking up on the sport through her parents' love of the SF Giants and the soothing sounds of Jon Miller on the radio.Natasha received a Bachelor's degree from Cal with a major in cognitive science and minor in journalism. In college, she covered breaking news, national politics, and lifestyle for The Tab’s Berkeley offshoot. She also led the campus’ official creative agency, an organization responsible for campus-wide design education as well as graphic design, photography, and web design work for student organizations.

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