Is the Evan Longoria Barehanded Catch a Gillette Ad?

A video of a crazy barehanded catch from Tampa Bay Ray Evan Longoria has gone viral with more than 1 million views, and it’s left some wondering about its origins and authenticity.

The clip, posted on YouTube May 6, shows Longoria being interviewed near first base by a reporter, and a line drive appears to be heading straight for the woman’s head. But Longoria, showing amazingly fast reflexes, fields the ball with his bare hand and tells his teammates to “keep it on the field.”

Although the video appears not to be staged, some bloggers have speculated that it’s actually a Gillette ad.

The evidence: Longoria has appeared in ads for the brand as a “Gillette Young Gun,” a Gillette logo is prominent in the video, and another seemingly off-the-cuff video, the famous “Roger Federer Trickshot,” also seemed to be partially staged (and was published by Gillette).

A Gillette rep, however, says the clip is definitely not an ad: “Evan Longoria is a Golden Glove third baseman and this catch speaks for itself.”

What do you think? Does this look staged to you or real?

via mashable.com