Peter Chase, Optimist of the Year

[pravata]

Wrigley, Wednesday night after Adam Dunn's home run onto Sheffield Avenue, 15 balls were thrown back onto the field ...Eight fans were ejected ...

Cubs spokesman Peter Chase said.

"We're not looking to end the tradition. We're asking fans to use their best judgment."
http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/cs-080417-throwing-balls-back-chicago-cubs,1,2061473.story

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

That's kind of funny for animals.

[austro]

That's kind of funny for animals.

What's funnier is that the ballplayers they'll be hitting with their extra baseballs are their own.

[Arky Vaughan]

"We're not looking to end the tradition. We're asking fans to use their best judgment."
http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/cs-080417-throwing-balls-back-chicago-cubs,1,2061473.story

Perhaps that was their best judgment.

[Gizzmonic]

"We're not looking to end the tradition. We're asking fans to use their best judgment."

The tradition of dipsomania and delusion kinda precludes using best judgment, does it not?

[Lefty]

"[F]ar and away the most obnoxious fans in baseball in this league are those who follow this team right here....You simply root against them." - Marty Brennaman, Reds announcer, during yesterday's assclownery.

audio here:  http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/cs-080417-marty-brennaman-chicago-cubs-reds,1,6962881.mp3file

[Mr. Happy]

Perhaps that was their best judgment.

Their best thinking got them where they are.

[Lefty]

Stay classy, cubfan.  "top selling shirt this season."

http://www.suntimes.com/sports/903754,cubshirt041808.article

[Craig]

Stay classy, cubfan.  "top selling shirt this season."

http://www.suntimes.com/sports/903754,cubshirt041808.article

I wonder if that's the same T-shirt vendor outside Wrigley that I bought my "Cardinals Suck" shirt from last year.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Stay classy, cubfan.  "top selling shirt this season."

http://www.suntimes.com/sports/903754,cubshirt041808.article

Classless and stupid. Not that the dumb-ass Cub fans would notice but the dumb-ass Cub vendors can't even spell. Everyone knows, when you want to insult Asians and their culture, you spell holy cow with one "r" not two. It's not Holly Cow!

Cow with a "k"? Idiots.

[MRaup]

Classless and stupid. Not that the dumb-ass Cub fans would notice but the dumb-ass Cub vendors can't even spell. Everyone knows, when you want to insult Asians and their culture, you spell holy cow with one "r" not two. It's not Holly Cow!

Cow with a "k"? Idiots.

The most amazing thing is, they've got a player whose name is FUK-U-DO-ME and that stupid ass shirt is the best they could come up with.

[Lefty]

The most amazing thing is, they've got a player whose name is FUK-U-DO-ME and that stupid ass shirt is the best they could come up with.

Right?

[Limey]

Not wanting to diminish the contempt deservedly heaped on CubFan, but I was at MMUPS on Friday night when Sampson was booed off the mound in the top of the 1st.  He'd sucked, but did he really deserve that?

I am concerned that the crowd at home games, forever maligned for being quiet and disinterested, has gone the wrong way when it comes to getting involved in the game.  I veer between thinking that this is just another incremental step on society's decent into idiocracy, or that it's because displays of group-arse have, in the past, motivated the owner to make a change (Jay Powell and Jimy Williams come to mind).

[BudGirl]

Not wanting to diminish the contempt deservedly heaped on CubFan, but I was at MMUPS on Friday night when Sampson was booed off the mound in the top of the 1st.  He'd sucked, but did he really deserve that?

I am concerned that the crowd at home games, forever maligned for being quiet and disinterested, has gone the wrong way when it comes to getting involved in the game.  I veer between thinking that this is just another incremental step on society's decent into idiocracy, or that it's because displays of group-arse have, in the past, motivated the owner to make a change (Jay Powell and Jimy Williams come to mind).

I am beginning to hate the crowd at MMP.  They do the fucking wave.  I hate the wave.  They don't pay attention.  They say stupid stuff.  They want immediate gratification and don't realize there is a price to pay later for that gratification.

[Mr. Happy]

Not wanting to diminish the contempt deservedly heaped on CubFan, but I was at MMUPS on Friday night when Sampson was booed off the mound in the top of the 1st.  He'd sucked, but did he really deserve that?

Good, true fans never boo anyone, even the opposing team. Everyone who does is a gabon.

[pravata]

Good, true fans never boo anyone, even the opposing team. Everyone who does is a gabon.

"true fans"?  how about anyone with a shred of human decency?

[pravata]

I am beginning to hate the crowd at MMP.  They do the fucking wave.  I hate the wave.  They don't pay attention.  They say stupid stuff.  They want immediate gratification and don't realize there is a price to pay later for that gratification.

I'm not going as much because of the crowd experience.  I usually don't sit in one spot because you get the full continuity of the stupidity of the conversations going on around you.  It's helpful to roam around the ballpark.  You know, like Mclane does.  That way you only get snippets of non-sequitor stupidity. 

[geezerdonk]

Everyone who does is a gabon.

Or a burundi.

[BudGirl]

I'm not going as much because of the crowd experience.  I usually don't sit in one spot because you get the full continuity of the stupidity of the conversations going on around you.  It's helpful to roam around the ballpark.  You know, like Mclane does.  That way you only get snippets of non-sequitor stupidity. 

I'm one of those that doesn't leave her seat.  (I have to really pee in order for me to get leave my seat.)  I feel as though I'm going to miss something.

I have noticed that the lower/"better" the seats the worse the fans.

[Limey]

I'm one of those that doesn't leave her seat.  (I have to really pee in order for me to get leave my seat.)  I feel as though I'm going to miss something.

Wouldn't it be better to leave you seat before you really pee?

I have noticed that the lower/"better" the seats the worse the fans.

The "ignorati" or, as they say in Limeyland with regard to the bandwagoning, corporate (Chelsea) fans, the "prawn sandwich brigade".

[pravata]

I'm one of those that doesn't leave her seat.  (I have to really pee in order for me to get leave my seat.)  I feel as though I'm going to miss something.

I have noticed that the lower/"better" the seats the worse the fans.

I stick to the concourse.  Anyone who passes in front of an aisle during an inning should be kneecapped with a souvenir bat.

[Duman]

I stick to the concourse.  Anyone who passes in front of an aisle during an inning should be kneecapped with a souvenir bat.

Thank you Mr. Gillooly

[chuck]

My favorite trick happens when an inning begins. It has to occur right at the first pitch to be maximally effective. Fuckwit pops up right in front of me (or in front of any other poor fool who's at the ballpark quixotically trying to watch the game) and proceeds to spend the next couple of outs checking and re-checking to make sure he has everyone's concession stand order fixed properly in his memory.

To elevate this to high art one needs to be seated in the middle of a row and maintain the presence of mind to return from one's foraging at the very outset of a future inning.

[Gizzmonic]

Booing the bad guys is half the fun.  Who wouldn't boo Albert Pujols?  You may as well ask me not to boo the Iron Sheik!

"true fans"?  how about anyone with a shred of human decency?

[BudGirl]

Don't forget those who can't find their seats.  The sections, rows, and seats are all labeled.  It really isn't hard to find your seat.  Find it and sit down.

[chuck]

Don't forget those who can't find their seats.  The sections, rows, and seats are all labeled.  It really isn't hard to find your seat.  Find it and sit down.

That's a good one, too. Third inning usually. You'd think that the stadium officials had deviously swapped the sections around randomly the night before. Dumbfuck will walk three quarters of the way down the aisle and stand there for a couple of minutes staring intently at his ticket. YO! It's letters and numbers and they are arranged in a predictable fucking pattern!

[pravata]

Booing the bad guys is half the fun.  Who wouldn't boo Albert Pujols?  You may as well ask me not to boo the Iron Sheik!

We differ on this. 

[Taras Bulba]

I am beginning to hate the crowd at MMP.  They do the fucking wave.  I hate the wave.  They don't pay attention.  They say stupid stuff.  They want immediate gratification and don't realize there is a price to pay later for that gratification.

Unfortunately, fans like yourself are an exception.  And, in Houston, it's been that way for a long time.   

[Mr. Happy]

Booing the bad guys is half the fun.  Who wouldn't boo Albert Pujols?  You may as well ask me not to boo the Iron Sheik!

Come on man. That's classless behavior.

[Bench]

Or a burundi.

I read this ten minutes ago and am still chuckling at it.

Hey Happy, would you mind explaining what you were trying to say? I honestly have no idea.

[Mr. Happy]

I read this ten minutes ago and am still chuckling at it.

Hey Happy, would you mind explaining what you were trying to say? I honestly have no idea.

A gabon is essentially an uncouth person. Many use the term to refer to Sicilian/Italian Mafia underlings.

[Limey]

Come on man. That's classless behavior.

Oh, don't get me wrong.  I'll boo Pooholes until I'm blue in the face.  I'd even boo an Astro if they were clearly tanking it - which thankfully is something that has almost never been the case (can't actually think of one off the top of my head).

Booing Sampson for having a bad day is classless...and brainless.  I wouldn't be surprised if that was the reason the BBGs decided to end the Astros' rally in the bottom of the frame, instead of letting them tie it up.

[Arky Vaughan]

The last two or three seasons the Astros have given the ushers "stop" signs asking that fans please wait until between plate appearances before walking from the concourses to their seats. I remember seeing this at Safeco a few years ago and thinking it was a great idea. The difference is, at Safeco, they actually enforce the rule and have the usher stop people from strolling down the aisles in the middle of a plate appearance. In Houston, they just let you walk on by. Why waste the money to make the stupid signs if you're not going to ask people to heed them?

[BudGirl]

What good are the signs at stopping people from getting up in the middle of a pitch?  Those are the people that need to get hit by a foul ball.

[mihoba]

What good are the signs at stopping people from getting up in the middle of a pitch?  Those are the people that need to get hit by a foul ball.

We need to schedule a ballpark etiquette course. We could make millions in Houston alone.

I always have a problem with fans wearing white shirts to the game. Have you ever tried to catch a ball in a background of a sea of white-shirted fans? Ummm, me neither, but it sounds bad!

[Arky Vaughan]

What good are the signs at stopping people from getting up in the middle of a pitch?  Those are the people that need to get hit by a foul ball.

I'm talking about people who got up in the middle of a pitch last inning and now are planning to return to their seats with $75 worth of concessions in the middle of a pitch this inning. You can't stop people from going up to the concourses, but you can stop them from coming down.

[Arky Vaughan]

We need to schedule a ballpark etiquette course. We could make millions in Houston alone.

Whether anybody would actually attend is highly in doubt.

[BudGirl]

I'm talking about people who got up in the middle of a pitch last inning and now are planning to return to their seats with $75 worth of concessions in the middle of a pitch this inning. You can't stop people from going up to the concourses, but you can stop them from coming down.

I knew what you meant, I just wanted to bitch about them leaving in the first place.

[BudGirl]

Whether anybody would actually attend is highly in doubt.

If they did, they'd be late.

[Arky Vaughan]

If they did, they'd be late.

They'd also keep getting up in the middle of class to visit Sheriff Blaylock.

[JaneDoe]

I am so glad I am not the only one who feels this way about the majority of people that attend the games.  Notice I did not call them fans.  They are not.  They are AIS, AICSL, just A in general.

[pravata]

I am so glad I am not the only one who feels this way about the majority of people that attend the games.  Notice I did not call them fans.  They are not.  They are AIS, AICSL, just A in general.

3 million attendees visited the Ballpark last season.  Forbes says the Astros cleared $20 million in 07.  Media outlets scramble for the opinions of these people, the less informed the better.   We are not the target audience. 

[Limey]

Whether anybody would actually attend is highly in doubt.

If they showed it on the jumbotron, but dressed it up as a Hummer race/kiss cam/blooper reel, people would watch.

[Gizzmonic]

Yeah, that's actually a great idea.

But as pravata (aka the Last Sane Man) put it, we are no the target audience.  It's doubtful the management cares about etiquette, so long as it doesn't affect the bottom line.  They're selling an experience, not a game.

If they showed it on the jumbotron, but dressed it up as a Hummer race/kiss cam/blooper reel, people would watch.

[pravata]

But as pravata (aka the Last Sane Man) put it, ...

You're screwed.  To make a loop, daisy chain, disappear up our own butt, Ouroboros, Mobius strip of this thread, it's the triumph of the cubbification of baseball.   Year after year, one of the worst teams in baseball: how in hell do they pack em in, and at day games no less!, with no music! no big scoreboard! no mascot, no flunjers, capdabblers and smendlers!  They sell the experience.   So for the "experience" the Wrigley fans are left to their own devices and their device is to get stinking drunk and throw 15 baseballs back on the field.  That's why teams have to hire the likes of Pam Gardner so that the experience can be sanded down, decoupaged, and shellaced. 

[geezerdonk]

A gabon is essentially an uncouth person. Many use the term to refer to Sicilian/Italian Mafia underlings.

maybe a combination goomba and jabroni with some cabrón thrown in for good measure

[Limey]

But as pravata (aka the Last Sane Man) put it, we are no the target audience.  It's doubtful the management cares about etiquette, so long as it doesn't affect the bottom line.  They're selling an experience, not a game.

I am a member of a golf club, and I was very happy to join because I was fed up with the ignorance of those who frequent the muni tracks.  Better at a club I hoped.  Wrong!  It's just the same ignorant yahoos, with a side order of entitlement.

People suck.

[BizidyDizidy]

I am a member of a golf club, and I was very happy to join because I was fed up with the ignorance of those who frequent the muni tracks.  Better at a club I hoped.  Wrong!  It's just the same ignorant yahoos, with a side order of entitlement.

People suck.

The scariest thing is that almost everyone feels this way.

[Limey]

The scariest thing is that almost everyone feels this way.

There's a couple of rules of golf etiquette that I believe should be applied to real life but which are, conversely, pretty much universally not applied.  They are:-

1)  Your place is behind the person in front, not in front of the person behind; and

2)  When it's your turn, be ready.

[BizidyDizidy]

There's a couple of rules of golf etiquette that I believe should be applied to real life but which are, conversely, pretty much universally not applied.  They are:-

1)  Your place is behind the person in front, not in front of the person behind; and

2)  When it's your turn, be ready.

Are you sure there's not one involving ball washing?

[Limey]

Are you sure there's not one involving ball washing?

Never wash your balls before hitting over water?  (If you do, you'll never see it again).

[Andyzipp]

"true fans"?  how about anyone with a shred of human decency?

A person has human dignity.  People do not.  Group dynamics take away the burdens of individual thought and accountability.

[BizidyDizidy]

A person has human dignity.  People do not.  Group dynamics take away the burdens of individual thought and accountability.

cf. Kitty Genovese, Stanley Milgram, The Nazis, et. al.

[pravata]

cf. Kitty Genovese, Stanley Milgram, The Nazis, et. al.

No, I dont think they're murderers, just morons.  Collectively and individually, free of any burden of thought.

[Limey]

No, I dont think they're murderers, just morons.  Collectively and individually, free of any burden of thought.

War is Peace
Freedom is Slavery
Ignorance is Strength

[cougar]

Getting back to the original post for a moment, I like Marty Brennaman's take on the incident at the scene of the idiocy.

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/cs-080417-marty-brennaman-chicago-cubs-reds,1,6962881.mp3file

Sorry if this has been Cabrera'd, but this seems to be the reasonable place for it, and ragging on Cubs fans always deserves a place on the intertubes.

[Greg M]

cf. Kitty Genovese, Stanley Milgram, The Nazis, et. al.

Social Psych 200.  What a class.  Not sure what Kitty's got to do with people standing their fat asses in front of my face during a ball game.  Or Milgram for that matter.  Did they think somebody else would do it?  Are they told to do it??  It's mostly due to a lack of etiquette teaching, instead of a generalizable social phenomenon.

[geezerdonk]

Not sure what Kitty's got to do with people standing their fat asses in front of my face during a ball game. 

I am almost certain that Winston Moseley is a cub fan.