What I surmise will happen is that you will see a college athlete who is at the top of his game sign a huge contract with a major league team and then come out. I do not think at this moment in time you will see a player who is already in the major leagues come out. The circus atmosphere will be there when that player finally does come out of the closet. Once that newness wears off, they will be very well-accepted. One thing people have to understand is that you will always hear those snide remarks, whether it is your first year or your last year.
Fans are fans.
They yell and scream, and they don't really care if they are hurting someone's feelings. A lot of times they say it just to say it, and they really don't mean it. Once the newness wears off, the player will be accepted with open arms, especially if they are hitting 50 home runs or get 20 wins in pitching a year. As far as professional players are concerned, the last time one came out to me was three or four years ago. As far as the college level, which I think is just as important if not more so, I have players talking to me all the time.