My first/only game at Wrigley, I got "Give it to the kid"

[ironmanfan]

The one and only time I got a foul ball in 2009 i preempted any of that by loudly announcing I was giving the ball to my son when I got home. No hassles after that.

this

[red33sox]

I hate this... last year, im in front row behind the Nationals bullpen. An unknown girl is sitting next to me. The bullpen catcher throws a ball up between the two of us... she doesnt move, I lean forward and catch it. As i am showing my friend, she leans over and says " that was for me." I looked around in disbelief, and stupidly hand her the ball. She didnt say thank you, didnt smile at me, nothing... she just took a pic of it with her stupid phone, put it in her bag and went on to just looking at her phone. It really pissed me off, but sometimes, its easier to just hand it off then deal with B****es

[vince182]

I hate this... last year, im in front row behind the Nationals bullpen. An unknown girl is sitting next to me. The bullpen catcher throws a ball up between the two of us... she doesnt move, I lean forward and catch it. As i am showing my friend, she leans over and says " that was for me." I looked around in disbelief, and stupidly hand her the ball. She didnt say thank you, didnt smile at me, nothing... she just took a pic of it with her stupid phone, put it in her bag and went on to just looking at her phone. It really pissed me off, but sometimes, its easier to just hand it off then deal with B****es

I'm telling you! Little league balls! I guarantee she wouldn't have even noticed that you swapped the real one for a little league ball. How funny would that picture be that she took!!!?

[Popinjaysnamesir]

My uncle and I are closed it was he who took me to my first MLB game at the age of 6. I really wanted to catch a foul ball for him. Took 20 years and maybe 100 games, but Miguel Cabrera throws one randomly into the crowd. That was a really cool moment. Who are these people to insert themselves and who are these kids that they deserve it?

Over time, I've given out plenty of balls. It should be a nice thing to do, not a requirement. It's one thing to yell at a guy who steals it from the kid, but not catches it fairly.

If all of these people yelling really cared about children, we could solve childhood hunger.

[beef]

I always bring my girlfriend with and give baseballs to her...no arguments from "the idiots" and the ball is still going into my collection lol

[lengthwise1]

That's stinks. We should all start taking ratty backup baseballs to the games like this genius.

http://larrybrownsports.com/baseball...ches-it/238216

ha, was going to post that I carry a "decoy" in my backpack usually

[lengthwise1]

ha, was going to post that I carry a "decoy" in my backpack usually

I should have added, I catch a ton of BP balls and give away 90%+, so I really don't feel bad keeping any gamer. I also have a 3 yr old, but only sees a handful of games for obvious reasons...

[G1X]

I agree with all of you. Ignore the chant "give it to the kid". Maybe I am too old fashioned, but I always felt that one should "earn" a ball hit or thrown into the stands, not have it given to them by begging the fan who made the catch. When I was a kid, I would refuse any offerings as I felt like if I didn't come up with the ball myself when it went in to the stands, I didn't deserve to have it.

I will never forget being 12-years old and grabbing my first foul ball at a Southern League game at historic Rickwood Field. What a thrill it was when I came up with the ball that had landed beneath my seat! I have grabbed many more over the years at Southern League and Carolina League games, and have handed off a few to my nephew, friend's kids, etc., but I always felt that it would be a bit awkward if I was to give the ball to some tyke that I did not know who was begging me unmercifully. I often want to say, "Earn it for yourself, kid!", but I refrain and politely say that I am taking it home to my nephew/neighbor's kid/etc. I recently gave a ball to one of my best friend's sons. That was much more rewarding and meaningful to me than handing it off to a stranger.

While I have had much success at minor league games, I have yet to come up with a foul ball at any of the hundreds of major league games I have attended over the years (several embarrassing drops ). You better believe, even at my advanced age, that I am not about to give it up if one ever lands in my hands.

Sure, it's just a ball, but I'm still a kid at heart when I go to a ball game, and it is something that I want to hold on to for the memory.

Mark Hayne
Gridiron Exchange

P.S. It is VERY BAD BEHAVIOR if you plow through kids in your attempt to grab a ball. But if it lands in your hands, or else you come up with the ball cleanly without mowing anyone down in the process, it's yours with no guilt attached - period!

[sox83cubs84]

I agree with all of you. Ignore the chant "give it to the kid". Maybe I am too old fashioned, but I always felt that one should "earn" a ball hit or thrown into the stands, not have it given to them by begging the fan who made the catch. When I was a kid, I would refuse any offerings as I felt like if I didn't come up with the ball myself when it went in to the stands, I didn't deserve to have it.

I will never forget being 12-years old and grabbing my first foul ball at a Southern League game at historic Rickwood Field. What a thrill it was when I came up with the ball that had landed beneath my seat! I have grabbed many more over the years at Southern League and Carolina League games, and have handed off a few to my nephew, friend's kids, etc., but I always felt that it would be a bit awkward if I was to give the ball to some tyke that I did not know who was begging me unmercifully. I often want to say, "Earn it for yourself, kid!", but I refrain and politely say that I am taking it home to my nephew/neighbor's kid/etc. I recently gave a ball to one of my best friend's sons. That was much more rewarding and meaningful to me than handing it off to a stranger.

While I have had much success at minor league games, I have yet to come up with a foul ball at any of the hundreds of major league games I have attended over the years (several embarrassing drops ). You better believe, even at my advanced age, that I am not about to give it up if one ever lands in my hands.

Sure, it's just a ball, but I'm still a kid at heart when I go to a ball game, and it is something that I want to hold on to for the memory.

Mark Hayne
Gridiron Exchange

P.S. It is VERY BAD BEHAVIOR if you plow through kids in your attempt to grab a ball. But if it lands in your hands, or else you come up with the ball cleanly without mowing anyone down in the process, it's yours with no guilt attached - period!

Mark:
Your PS is a valid one, and one I try to live by when ballhawking. Unfoirtunately, a lot of fans and shaggers in Chicago (especially Wrigley Field) aren't that civilized.

Dave M.

[SEAFAN76]

Little rant here.. Today was my first and only foreseeable game at Wrigley. The wife and I had dugout seats on the visitors side, and it was an awesome experience. I'm completely neutral when it comes to the two teams, but was cheering on the Padres bc I was in close proximity to the players.

We arrived two hours early, and the first thing I did was purchase a GU ball from yesterday's game.. Just $30 and from KB's first hit game.. Awesome. We get to our seats to watch BP and there are kids asking for autos. The wife asks why I'm not up there trying to get auto's, and I say it's exciting for the kids and let them have the interaction/experience .. I'm not into autos and I'm not going to go beg for them.

So, bottom of the 8th. Strikeout to end the inning.. Derrick Norris runs back to the dugout.. I'm cheering him on, and he rolls the strike-out ball directly to me across the dugout. Then, I start hearing "give it to the kid" chants.. I looked around bc I had an isle seat and there were no kids near me. And on top of that he rolled the ball to me.. He didn't throw it up in the crowd and I had to jump or dive or elbow to get it.. He rolled it to me.

Turns out a kid had run down from 4/5 rows back, decked out in Cubs gear. And was now standing next to me in the isle. So, I hand him the ball.. People cheer. I get fist bumps, and his mom comes to thank me. They couldn't have been nicer.

But.. Man that sucks. A once in a lifetime event for me, and I have to give it up bc I'm not 8? I did end up buying a gu ball from yesterday and today's game. Along with a 2014 ball with the 100yr Logo and a Castro bat. But, as we all know, items that are given to you are priceless. Especially fresh from the field.. And from Wrigley Field too. It was also the first gu ball I had recieved or caught at a game.

I would have just kept the ball.

When it comes to sports, aren't we ALL just kids at heart?
Plus, most of us never had the chance to get one, as a kid or now.

I was at BP once, and a young pretty blonde girl was tossed a ball.
Then another player minutes later that didn't see she already had one, threw her another ball. In the end she got like FOUR balls because she was young and cute.

Then some 10-12 yo boys were next to me when a line drive one hop came our way. It was just to my right, I LET the kid take it........... because he's a kid. Then one was coming straight at me, HE reached in front of ME!!!
So now he has TWO. I then told him, "I don't care how old you are, don't be rude".
It goes both ways. I'd never got a ball when I was a kid, so in my mind still waiting to get a ball made me feel like a kid. I finally got the on hop line drive. I no longer go down for BP for that reason, and the fact that they don't use gamers for BP. I can also usually find game used balls on sale for $10 at the end of the year.