Guest Article #3: Baseball in Arizona

Wednesday, March 26th - Kansas City vs. San Diego. This was the last spring home game for the San Diego Padres. The stores & stands were selling everything at 1/2 prices. The people selling merchandise were very friendly. I would diagnose the fans, however, as narcissistic. The first instance was when a batter let go of his bat while swinging. It landed in the next section from ours not far from a security guard. As I watched it land, I saw a man 10 rows down run up the stairs at lightning pace & grab the bat. Do you think that he would give it to a young fan? No way. Maybe he had a child at home or a grandson to give the bat to or he just wanted to make some money. I do not know. However, the next fan took the cake, frosting & ice cream. We were trying to find good seats, so we sat in the front row just down from where our ticketed seats were. Just as the game got started a couple that were season ticket holders bumped us out. No problem. That is the way it works in baseball parks. A little bit later the husband caught a foul ball. He did not attempt to find a child to give it to. Towards the end of the game a ball bounced into the hands of his wife. She also did not attempt to give it to a child. That's when I almost lost it. It ran through my mind that I ought to go down to where they were sitting & embarrass the crap out of them. Unfortunately, I restrained myself. In hindsight I probably just should have asked them what does it mean to be a baseball fan. What can I say? They were probably from San Diego & they left the game in the 6th inning. Maybe I should have asked them to join me at Fenway. Maybe after that experience they would get it! We are lucky to live in New England where the best fans in the world live!!! (Author: Coach Gaff)