If you watch something 100x you can start to read whatever you want into it.

This all happened in the span of about 6 seconds. It probably took the ball from the bat to the wall where Sheff got it about 4 seconds to get there and the rest about 2.

I sincerely don't believe the guy actually was taking a swing. MY OPINION. You ever think he may have been trying to play the hop, the ball was bouncing along the fence. It just seems ludricrous to think he would actually try to punch him.


I could be wrong I only have seen it once in slo mo.

why are we talking about the "punch" when the beer toss was absolutely hilarious.

i think Craig House (the fan) should've been tossed for going after the ball, which in my estimation is all that he was trying to do. so, sucks for him, although i hope his season tix (evidently, he's been a season ticket holder for 15+ years, is a coach of a basketball program south of boston, etc.) are NOT revoked, as some of the jerks on EEI have been calling for.

i think Sheff's response (pushing House) to being hit inadvertently was stupid. so, sucks for him. should he be punished for the shove? sure. should he be punished for coming close to hitting a fan? hell no, as what kind of precedent does that set for players?

i think the fact that Sheff didn't end up clocking House (or the GAP beer fanatic) is a good thing, but the outpouring of support for Sheff showing restraint annoys me - i don't get patted on the back for doing my job, why the hell should he? Johnny Damon saying "well, Sheff clearly showed a lot of class by not hitting that guy" doesn't sit well with me either - so what, anytime i don't kick someone's ass for inadvertently hitting me, i should be commended? the implication seems to be: if you're an athlete, you are held to a different standard, particularly if you're on the field of play.

catchers go into the stands all the time catching pop fly balls, sometimes being prevented from making the play because of a fan going for the ball, bumping the player, etc - does that give Varitek or Posada the right to just shove the fan for screwing up a play or "hitting" them? i would say it does not...

KPH

Dude, between this, the Ron Artest fight, and the Italian Champions League match that was stopped for PELTING A GOALIE WITH LIT FLARES, there's some crazy shit going down in sports over the last few months. Duck!

oh man, check out my .sig now. that no artist AuidoTrack 01 song IS THE JAM BOY!!!!!!

KPH

I don't really think he was trying to swing or hurt Sheff but I do think he was trying to put his hand in his face to distract him and hopefully (from his standpoint) have the ball go by. I don't believe for a second that he was looking for a souvenir. He doesn't even bend over to get anywhere close to the ball.

I agree with KPH that Sheff doesn't deserve any pats on the back for not clocking the guy. He really shouldn't have even pushed the guy like he did. Interesting that Sheff stated that the Artest situation popped in his head and restrained him from going further not wanting to risk suspensions and hurting his team. I give Stern some credit for showing some balls in how he dealt with that.

np: Manecas Costa

I think ball players should be held to a somewhat different standard, but in the end we are all human....

if someone hits, shoves, or pushes you, a natural first reaction is to defend yourself in a manner....

It will be debated for a while whether what the guy was doing is either trying to intefere with Sheff, knock his cap off, or just being a drunken fool....or going for the ball (which i dont buy for a second as the ball was nowhere near where the contact between sheff and the guy happened)....

Sheff is a hot head, an ass, whatever....maybe people are commending him in a sense of what happened in the Ron Artest situation....he didnt let his emotions in the heat of the moment get a hold of him...He was prepared to fight back, but in the end, didnt......that's a commendable thing in a ugly situation.

Should the Orioles outfielder who had the ball taken from him by that little shit in yankee stadium have been commended if he had said "what I wanted to do was go up in the stands and wring that little bastards neck"?

Absolutely not, even though that was a playoff game with a lot more on the line the reason is he didn't act like a jackass and make a bunch of stupid comments. Fan interference happens all the time and they make contact with players all the time. It's just some numbskull roidhead like Sheffield that makes a big deal out of it.

I've already said that I don't think sheff should be commended but that's a terrible analogy. Intentional or not...that guy hit sheffield in the face. That's what pissed sheffield off and understandably so.

Distilled and lacking my verbage, this is exactly what I meant.

Still, have you checked out AUDIOTRACK 2?!!

I don't know why I find that so hysterical, but there it be.

KPH

Billy_G

I'm guessing Jimmy Stripe is an O's fan so I'll add: "Go Pavano!"

[/quote]

I'm guessing Jimmy Stripe is an O's fan so I'll add: "Go Pavano!" [/quote]


Actually a Mariner fan which makes me as insignificant in a baseball discussion as the team itself. I just cannot stand how things are so magnified in the Sox- Yanks world. I think its a great rivalry and good for the game, but come on, the amount of coverage for this is ridiculous.

Why would someone waste a beer on Sheffield?? That pisses me off!!!

oh, go buy a motley crue record, jerky!

she was just freaking about some black dude wildin'...

lol.

I don't care who the player is or what his character is, if a fan interfers he needs to go to jail. I don't tune in to watch some drunk dumbass interfer with play or throw cups with ice at a player. We need to put an end to this before a player knocks someone the fuckout.

ok frank castle.

Go East!

There is a huge difference between a right fielder making an attempt on a live ball in play and a catcher going in to the stands for a foul ball. No spectator has any business whatsoever interfering with a live ball. Ever.

I don't think the guy was going for the ball. I'm not sold on him trying to take a swing either, but either way, he has absolutely zero business interfering with a live ball, which is exactly what he was doing whether he was going for the ball, hat, face, etc. Pick your target, he still injected himself into the play which is grounds for immediate escort out of the stadium.

I'm not saying Sheffield should be commended, but dick or not (which is totally immaterial) I can understand how he reacted. Comparing a similar reaction of not taking the opportunity to bust ass after casual contact is not an analogy with much merit.

Sheffield is doing his job, which to me changes the situation. Imagine you are trying to finish up the last two paragraphs on a sales proposal to a new client and someone comes and pushes your monitor off the desk. Or kicks at your chair incessantly. Or pours a Pepsi on your back. Think about it in the context of doing your job in a pretty high pressure situation and the whole thing takes a new gravity.

I bet most of use would have at least lashed out if we're trying to catch the last FedEx guy of the day and some body hip checks you into a desk as you scoot down the hall.

Again- extended media coverage for a case of fan interference which led to absolutely nothing happening.

from ESPN....it's over


NEW YORK -- Yankees outfielder Gary Sheffield won't be punished for his role in a scuffle with fans at Fenway Park last week.



AP Photo/Charles Krupa
Sheffield was praised by the discipline committee for showing restraint during the encounter with fans.Bob Watson, baseball's vice president in charge of discipline, made the decision Wednesday, a day after meeting with Sheffield and the right fielder's agent at Yankee Stadium.

"It just proves that I was right," Sheffield said before Wednesday night's game at Toronto. "I'm just glad I was an example of how to handle a situation without making it worse or hurting the Yankees or any organization for that matter, or any sport.

"It wouldn't have been just me involved if I would have went into the stands, it would have been my teammates. I would have put them at risk. I'd have put the organization at risk and also baseball," he said.

The commissioner's office said Watson concluded the fan reached over the barrier near the right-field corner during the April 14 game in Boston and "struck Sheffield on the head as he was attempting to field a ball in play."

"Sheffield in response swung his arms in an effort to extricate himself from the situation and to avoid further abuse, then completed the play and returned to confront the fan," the statement continued. "At that time no further altercation occurred, Red Sox security stepped in promptly and order was restored. Under the circumstances, Bob Watson concluded that discipline for Sheffield was not warranted."

Commissioner Bud Selig, in a statement, said: "We do not condone any interaction between fans and players whether initiated by either fans or players. I am pleased that Gary Sheffield showed restraint in not overreacting to the improper and clearly aggressive action of the fan in question."

On Tuesday, Boston police filed applications for misdemeanor criminal charges against two fans -- one who allegedly made contact with Sheffield and another who allegedly tossed a beer at him. A clerk magistrate will determine whether a disorderly conduct charge is warranted against the fans, police spokesman Officer John Boyle said.

The Red Sox officials revoked season tickets from Christopher House, the fan who appeared to make contact. The other fan has not been identified, but the Red Sox said he will not be able to buy tickets for games at Fenway this season.

"I also commend the Boston Red Sox for their swift and decisive actions regarding the involved fans," Selig said.