Fla. Marlins Call For Big-Bellied Cheerleaders

Because baseball needs more plus-size guys jumping around
By Caroline Zimmerman,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 24, 2008 1:04 PM CST
Fla. Marlins Call For Big-Bellied Cheerleaders
Florida Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez, left, and Andre Dawson, right, special assistant to the president of the team, watch player Chris Coghlan take batting practice at spring training baseball practice, Friday, Feb. 22, 2008, in Jupiter, Fla. (AP Photo/Rob Carr)   (Associated Press)

The Florida Marlins are currently holding tryouts for new male cheerleaders—the chubbier, the better. Though the Marlins already have lean pompom girls rooting on the sidelines, the AP reports, they're looking to create a rotund 10-man squad called the Manatees to boost record-low attendance at home games. But these big boys will be chosen just like the girls, officials say: based on how well they shake their, uh, booty.

The Manatees, named after the less-than-svelte sea cow, won't get paid in cash but will score free tickets. And this isn't the first occasion in sports history that has made beefy men cheer: The plus-size, all-male Matadors have been shaking their hips for the Chicago Bulls since 2003. (More Florida Marlins stories.)

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