A mildly disturbing story that makes me wish sometimes we could keep the world of sports / entertainment separate from the larger political world. From an ESPN article about my favorite baseball team’s All-Star right fielder and a loathsome, repressive dictator:

President Hugo Chavez came to the defense of Magglio Ordonez on Sunday, slamming Venezuelan baseball fans who booed the major leaguer at the World Baseball Classic.

Chavez lamented that his friendship with Ordonez prompted catcalls from the mostly Venezuelan crowd during the team’s 3-1 victory over the Netherlands in Miami on Saturday, saying the fans who booed the Detroit Tigers slugger “have no shame.”…

Ordonez, one of Venezuela’s biggest baseball stars, appeared in a television ad last month supporting a proposal by Chavez to eliminate term limits for the president and other elected officials through a constitutional amendment. Voters approved the proposal in a Feb. 15 referendum.

The outfielder also joined the socialist for a friendly softball game ahead of the vote….

Say it ain’t so, Magglio.

I could have gone on never reading that story, living instead in ignorant bliss. Three weeks ’till Opening Day.