The Overblown Ball Throwing Incident at Squirrels Game
If you haven’t heard the story already, let me recap it for you. 1B Brandon Belt hit a foul ball into the upper deck along the 3rd baseline. Next thing you know, the ball is thrown from the upper deck onto the field and hits the Reading Phillies pitcher on the ankle. The pitcher was […]
If you haven’t heard the story already, let me recap it for you. 1B Brandon Belt hit a foul ball into the upper deck along the 3rd baseline. Next thing you know, the ball is thrown from the upper deck onto the field and hits the Reading Phillies pitcher on the ankle. The pitcher was stunned. The coaches for the Phillies were angry. Most of the crowd was in shock.
According to the piece written in the RTD, the guilty party realized what happened and tried to leave the stadium. Stadium Authorities caught up with him and he was escorted out of the stadium. Apparently, he has since been banned from the Diamond for life.
I was at the game, and as the ball came flying out onto the field, I thought it was an innocent prank. Then as it hit the pitcher, that levity turned into fear for the pitchers health. It was a scary moment. Unfortunately, the result of the prank has somewhat blown the situation out of proportion. It is a time honored tradition to throw the ball back on the field when the opposition hits a home run. I honestly think that this incident was a play on the concept. I wasn’t close enough to the perp to gauge his emotion, but I think that he actually hit a player, on the fly, was a complete accident. I bet you if he couldn’t do it again in another 10 attempts. That is a tough, accurate throw. Yet since contact was made, the situation was escalated.
I realize it is impossible to judge intent after the fact. But it would be difficult to convince me that what transpired was malicious. Dumb- yes. Malicious- nope. At least the Squirrels aren’t trying to prosecute, but still banning him for life seems a bit overboard. I hope COO Todd Parnell and Chief Executive Manager Chuck Domino reconsider the decision after the hype has blown over.
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