The Facebook pages of several MLB teams “were hacked Thursday afternoon,” and in some cases, existing content “was replaced with status updates ranging from mildly amusing to downright vulgar,” according to the AP. MLB Advanced Media in a statement said, “We are working with Facebook, Major League Baseball Security and, where appropriate, legal authorities to determine the circumstances surrounding this situation." Teams affected included the Giants, Marlins, White Sox, Padres, Nationals, Angels, Braves, Yankees and Cubs (AP, 8/2). In Miami, Manny Navarro notes for a “brief moment, the Marlins Facebook page, which has 278,711 likes, promised the first 10,000 fans 18 and under ‘a free rescued fighting pit bull courtesy of the Dade County Animal Rescue League.’” The announcement “stayed up for a few minutes before being taken down.” A hack on the Padres' page “strongly discouraged attendance by the handicapped; the Nationals announced the team was going back to Montreal,” while the Giants made “a derogatory Chick-Fil-A comment” (MIAMI HERALD, 8/3). Hackers posted an announcement on the Yankees’ page that SS Derek Jeter “will miss the rest of the season to undergo sex-change surgery.” The posting read, "He promises to come back stronger than ever in 2013 as Minnie Mantlez” (NEWSDAY, 8/3). In Chicago, Toni Ginnetti notes the Cubs’ site was “hit with slurs against comedian Bill Murray.” The White Sox’ page “made a remark about Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney regarding President Barack Obama, a Sox fan.” Apologies were issued by the teams “in some cases through their Twitter accounts” (SUNTIMES.com, 8/3). NBCSPORTS.com’s Matthew Pouliot noted it is “not the first time that MLB Facebook pages have been hacked, but this does appear to the first time someone has hit multiple pages at once” (NBCSPORTS.com, 8/2).
