Fans Who Are Jerks!

[rmackman]

Frankly I don't understand the mentality of some people. Yesterday I attended the Florida Marlins final game of the season. After their wonderful comeback win over the Atlanta Braves, the players started throwing their hats, jerseys, whatever they had into the stands.

I applaud them for doing that as it promotes a good relationship with the fans. Besides, not many people showed up to watch the game, so the people who really cared got the free goods. The problem I have is how some fans turn into immature children when faced with the prospect of getting something from a player.

Juan Pierre walked right in front of where I was standing and he pulled out the bat he had used for that day's game in which he got 5 hits including the game-winning hit. I was like hey that's pretty cool he's going to give that away. Sure enough he handed the bat to me and I grabbed onto the handle and said thanks to him. I was happy to have my bat and walk away, but this 40-something fat guy grabbed the fat end of the bat and yanked my arm back so that I hit a 7-year-old in the forehead. Needless to say, I let go of the bat to make sure the kid was okay. The guy yelled "YEAH I GOT YOUR BAT B**CH!" He then ran up the stairs I guess to leave. The kid was alright, and I helped him get a coaches attention so that they threw him a game ball so he was happy.

My point is why do these people feel the need to step on people or injure others for a bat or a ball or a hat? Yes I know it's really cool to get something, but it's not worth hurting someone for. Barry Bond's 715th HR ball...okay yeah I might punch someone for that...Juan Pierre's bat...although he's one of my favorite players to watch I don't think I'd go that far.

This isn't the first time I've seen this happen. I've seen guys drop their kids to catch a ball and it wasn't even in self defense. How can you drop your kid to go reach for a ball!?!?

I remember another time back in 1995, my younger brother was about 12 or 13 at the time, and we all went to a Florida Panthers hockey game. A puck got flipped into the crowd off of someone's stick and landed on the stairs 3 rows down from us. My little brother jumped on it and was all excited yelling "I GOT IT DAD!!!" Needless to say this 30-something guy pinned his arm down, wrenched out the puck, and I assume tried to give it to his kid. My dad got in his face yelling "How can you take something from a 12 year old kid." The fans around the area booed and the guy told my dad to "Piss off!" My brother was upset, so my dad bought him a game puck from the souveneir shop at the intermission. I think any dad would do that for his son. Still the lengths people go to get trivial objects is just insane! My dad would have kicked the guys a** but why get yourself ejected from the arena over a $10 puck?

Anyways, that's my rant. People need to grow up sometimes.

[See Red]

Wasn't there some guy who pushed over a kid or a lady or something a year or two ago to get to a foul ball, and they showed the highlight on Sportscenter... or have I had too much to drink?

[rmackman]

Yeah at Texas Rangers game I think.

[Adam]

Some people are just simply a$$holes. Sad to say but most have kids and they will just pass on their :censored:ish tendencies on to them as well....

I remember seeing this year at a Rangers game? not sure... But after a homerun a kid about 9 or 10 was desperately searching the sections looking for it, climbing over seats and everything. He climbs into this one row and was looking over the backs of the seats looking for the ball when this forty something man walks up behind him and grabs the ball from the row the kid was standing in and just walks away.

The kid turns around and was rightly upset about the fact he was two feet away from it but looking in the wrong direction.

The guy could've at least giving the ball to the kid!

Just makes me angry.....

[ROCHitman]

Wasn't there some guy who pushed over a kid or a lady or something a year or two ago to get to a foul ball, and they showed the highlight on Sportscenter... or have I had too much to drink?

That was THIS year I think and it was in Arliginton.

[redsfan39]

I was at Busch Stadium this summer, and I was watching BP when Chris Carpenter started throughing old BP balls into the stands. He had chucked one in our section, and I was just watching a 7 to 8 year old leap for the ball, and a mid 30's man go for it well. I'm 6'3 and was a good bit taller than both of them so I just reached up and grabbed it and gave the ball to the kid, needless to say the man wasn't too happy but he could see where I was coming from I imagine. And he was a Cubs fan....

[DEAD!]

Gee, BgMack, where was security when those incidents happened?

[Pat]

I was in Green Bay for Training Camp and Favre threw a TD Pass to Driver in an O vs D scrimmage. There was a huge crowd trying to catch Longwells PAT. Anyway some older ppl who I understand would like it were there, but just sort of watching hoping to get lucky, lots of kids there as well. Anyway it comes sailing and there's a huge pile up. This is when some 30 year old fat guy jumps in on a bunch of ppl(including kids).

Luckily the ball came out and I got it, but still, what a jerk.

[CC97]

Gee, BgMack, where was security when those incidents happened?

Hey, don't rag on baseball security... it's tough to watch that many people

[VitaminD]

Just another sad milepost we pass all too frequently in our society today. It's emblematic of the larger problem - the loss of basic interpersonal respect for one another and the responsibility we all have to function as civil members of decent, polite society. Clearly, manners are arranged by societal convention and not by natural instinct, but basic manners and decency are eroding, and irresponsible a$$holes are breeding faster than the rest of us, passing this disturbing behavior onto the next generation all the while.

God knows how often we even see it here on these boards, a microcosm of the world as a whole. People of all ages and races from all over the world come in and out of here, sharing opinions on everything from drop-shadow numbers for the Brewers' AA team to what the Republicans are going to do about the Bill Bennett comments. Some - no, most - people carry themselves with decency and respect for the others involved in these discussions, and make this a great site; others prefer to say "screw you d***head" and run away. So it is at a ballgame; 40,000 decent people watch a game and have it ruined by a few dozen jackasses (and as a proud Philadelphian, I know this routine all too well).

[rmackman]

Gee, BgMack, where was security when those incidents happened? 

Hey, don't rag on baseball security... it's tough to watch that many people

The best part is that since it was the last Marlins game of the season with no playoff implications, and the fact that it was raining on and off all day, not many fans were there. The tickets sold attendance that day was like 29 or 30,000, but there definitely was maybe 10,000 fans, and mostly Braves fans who left. Of all the people fighting for the Marlins gear, I think it was probably about 200 people give or take? I guess that is too much for security. They were too busy yelling at people to stop standing on their seats. They'd point and go HEY YOU GET OFF THAT SEAT! Then if you didn't listen they'd go HEY YOU...YEAH YOU IN THE YELLOW SHIRT, GET OFF THE SEAT! Then if you didn't listen a 2nd time, you got the YOU'RE GONNA GET YOURSELF HURT KID PLEASE GET OFF THE SEAT! That's about it.

I'd say thats about as effective as telling Charles Manson, HEY YOU, STOP KILLING PEOPLE IT'S NOT NICE! HEY YOU SERIOUSLY THAT PROBABLY HURTS, STOP DOING THAT!

You have to realize that ballgame security is made up of just random people who get paid minimum wage to stand there. How do I know? Because I used to do it for concerts for none other than just to watch the concerts for free. I was watching the concert, not the crowd. Now if something serious broke out I was there, but most of the security doesn't care. However, at Ozzfest my best friend and I once had to body slam this guy who was starting a fight and held him down until the cops cuffed him. That was pretty fun! Anyways enough is enough I have to get to Rosh Hashanah services and dinner so I'll see you guys later! L'Shana Tovah to anyone who is Jewish. For those who aren't its basicaly Happy New Year in Hebrew. (I know this is a Blues Brothers guy but I figured it could be an Orthodox Jew also)

[Brass]

They probably stole it because they are dealers who sit in their parent's basement and live their life on eBay. Also, people who steal anything from anyone are failures at life. Simple as that, if you have to deep down to steal something from a 12-year old or even a store, you are a failure and your parents are as well. They don't care. That's really is what is wrong with our country. Parents that don't spend time with their kids to tell them right from wrong. Total failures.

[BondsBacker25]

Some people are just simply a$$holes. Sad to say but most have kids and they will just pass on their :censored:ish tendencies on to them as well....

I remember seeing this year at a Rangers game? not sure... But after a homerun a kid about 9 or 10 was desperately searching the sections looking for it, climbing over seats and everything. He climbs into this one row and was looking over the backs of the seats looking for the ball when this forty something man walks up behind him and grabs the ball from the row the kid was standing in and just walks away.

The kid turns around and was rightly upset about the fact he was two feet away from it but looking in the wrong direction.

The guy could've at least giving the ball to the kid!

Just makes me angry.....

Now thats one thing i dissagree with. I hate it when im at a ball game and a guy gets to a foul ball and ten seconds a kid comes up and starts crying because the guy didnt give the ball to him, and then the fans start booing him. Now i agree you shouldnt be a dick and use force against a little kid, or anybody for that matter to get something as lame as a baseball but if you got the ball ligit, why should you be obligated to give it to a kid. Ive been at games where ive seen one kid get four or five balls or more and when someone older gets a ball, which is a lot of times that persons first ever, the kid starts crying and moaning and the fans boo the older guy. WTF man?

[CC97]

Gee, BgMack, where was security when those incidents happened? 

Hey, don't rag on baseball security... it's tough to watch that many people

The best part is that since it was the last Marlins game of the season with no playoff implications, and the fact that it was raining on and off all day, not many fans were there. The tickets sold attendance that day was like 29 or 30,000, but there definitely was maybe 10,000 fans, and mostly Braves fans who left. Of all the people fighting for the Marlins gear, I think it was probably about 200 people give or take? I guess that is too much for security. They were too busy yelling at people to stop standing on their seats. They'd point and go HEY YOU GET OFF THAT SEAT! Then if you didn't listen they'd go HEY YOU...YEAH YOU IN THE YELLOW SHIRT, GET OFF THE SEAT! Then if you didn't listen a 2nd time, you got the YOU'RE GONNA GET YOURSELF HURT KID PLEASE GET OFF THE SEAT! That's about it.

I'd say thats about as effective as telling Charles Manson, HEY YOU, STOP KILLING PEOPLE IT'S NOT NICE! HEY YOU SERIOUSLY THAT PROBABLY HURTS, STOP DOING THAT!

You have to realize that ballgame security is made up of just random people who get paid minimum wage to stand there. How do I know? Because I used to do it for concerts for none other than just to watch the concerts for free. I was watching the concert, not the crowd. Now if something serious broke out I was there, but most of the security doesn't care. However, at Ozzfest my best friend and I once had to body slam this guy who was starting a fight and held him down until the cops cuffed him. That was pretty fun! Anyways enough is enough I have to get to Rosh Hashanah services and dinner so I'll see you guys later! L'Shana Tovah to anyone who is Jewish. For those who aren't its basicaly Happy New Year in Hebrew. (I know this is a Blues Brothers guy but I figured it could be an Orthodox Jew also)

Meh, I thought I did a pretty good job of it

[Stampman]

Gee, BgMack, where was security when those incidents happened? 

Hey, don't rag on baseball security... it's tough to watch that many people

True--but hopefully when it's possible they should be ejected.

And there are usually lots of witnesses...

SO not knocking you, just saying hopefully when it's possible they get the boot...

[DEAD!]

Gee, BgMack, where was security when those incidents happened? 

Hey, don't rag on baseball security... it's tough to watch that many people

I'm not doubting how difficult watching that many people is, but some of those fans who saw what happed might have caught the attention of some worker in the stadium.