Pushy senior ushers at the Unfriendly Confines

[sox83cubs84]

The activities at Wrigley Beer Garden continue to amaze and annoy me. I was at last night's Cubs-Nats game, and while the game was good (got a foul ball tossed up from the Nats' bullpen), BP turned into a headache for my buddy Joe. Joe has figured out a way to get some BP foul balls without bringing a mitt and without asking players for them. He just had procured his second ball of BP when an usher a distance away started browbeating him to "give it to the kids" (a pair ho, between them, already had four), and to sit down, because "he already had one". To his credit, Joe, in so many words, told the pushy senior to MYOB. The problem is, many of the ushers at Wrigley (mostly seniors) often get cranky and bossy towards fans. One woman has routinely told adult fans in her section during practice to "back away from the wall" and to "let the kids in front". I even had one last year tell me that I couldn't sit in the second group of lower deck seats (just behind the first main aisle) to watch BP....something I'd been doing the whole year. I ignored her, as I knew she was wrong, and she assured me that her supervisor would be down to see me...which, of course, never happened.

Wrigley seems more and more to be going out of their way to harass and jerk around fans that aren't season ticket holders or frat boy drunks in the bleachers. Take my advice, friends...if you want to go to a game in Chicago, check out the White Sox, not the Cubs. The ballpark is far less restrictive, and approching the players or shagging BP is far easier for the average fan/collector.

Dave M.
Chicago area

[murfsteve25]

Re: Pushy senior ushers at the Unfriendly Confines

Ya these ushers have been going on a power trip. Not just at Wrigley, but all across the country. When they start making up retarded rules like you cant go after anymore balls, thats when you know they think they are "top flight security".

[mbenga28]

Re: Pushy senior ushers at the Unfriendly Confines

can someone explain to me the tradition of catching balls and then giving it to children? a couple of games I've been to someone caught a foul ball in front of a kid and was booed mercilessly for not giving it up, he caught it why should he be obligated to give it to the child?

[10thMan]

Re: Pushy senior ushers at the Unfriendly Confines

This kinda reeks of the Almighty Dollar...Making sure the newer generations get all the freebies. I`ve said it for years, If your not sporting Silicone & Peroxide, or your not a little Kid, good luck fetching a BP Ball!!!

It`s hard work as an Adult Male trying to get a BP Ball & that`s just the way MLB must want it. I get the fact that the Kids should be having a good time, but when USHERS bite the hand that feeds them, makes me wonder...


Sean

[sox83cubs84]

Re: Pushy senior ushers at the Unfriendly Confines

If the curtain-climbers we're the ones actually BUYING the tickets, I might feel differently. But nearly all come on their parents' dime. If they want to give their kids a baseball, let THEM catch it, or get there early and have your kid stand by the wall and ask. It's not MY job to placate YOUR little potato-head!

Dave M.
Chicago area

[camarokids]

Re: Pushy senior ushers at the Unfriendly Confines

I used to hear this when I collected autographs at Tropicana Field. I would get to the stadium early before the gates would open, so I could be one of the first ones to get to the dugout for autographs. This was also one of the best spots for getting bats given to me!!!

People would say hey get out of the way and let the kids get up front.

I would kindly say "if you to be up front you need to get to the Stadium earlier". I would always offer to hand the kids ball to the players though. That way they could still get sigs. Quite a few times I would also let a kid slide in next to me if there was room.

I just get sick of hearing that kind of crap.

Everyone wants their kid(s) to get a sig or a ball but they don't want to have to put forth any time & effort to do so.

[emann]

Re: Pushy senior ushers at the Unfriendly Confines

It's funny you posted this re: older ushers...

I was at a Red Sox game @ Fenway a couple weeks back and had an usher yell at me. I was coming back out of the tunnel during the middle of a play and the crowd stopped to watch, so I got stuck behind them. For some reason this (easily) 80 year old usher came directly over to me and randomly shouted the following exchange in my face:

Old usher at the top of his lungs in my face and grabbing at my arm: "HEY! You can't look for your friends during the game!"

Unsure what the hell this old man was talking about, I replied "sorry, I'm not looking for friends, I'm trying to get to my seat and...".

Cutting me off, "You're not sitting in this section!"

I show my ticket (which was 2nd row back on the field, not the cheap seats), and reply "Actually, I am... I just went for food."

Old man makes a few grunts at my ticket as his brain catches up with his attitude, "Then you're over there somewhere, get OUTTA here! Stop wandering around... grumble, grumble"

Now, I understand they probably deal with kids screwing around all game and these old people can't handle that stress by the 2nd inning. But, I'm 34 years old, going to a game with my wife quietly sitting in our seats and spending alot more money than it's worth. I think they need to start moving some of these old timers along. Nice they employ people who were there when Babe Ruth pitched and all, but really, do fans need the attitude during a nice night out at the park.

[legaleagle92481]

Re: Pushy senior ushers at the Unfriendly Confines

I don't understand the whole thing. Every fan who buys a ticket should have equal rights to everything. The whole kids thing makes no sense. Kids rarely appreciate this stuff. How many five year olds really care about gu items? Often they are used by their parents as a prop to obtain items that later find their way to Ebay.

[sox83cubs84]

Re: Pushy senior ushers at the Unfriendly Confines

The activities at Wrigley Beer Garden continue to amaze and annoy me. I was at last night's Cubs-Nats game, and while the game was good (got a foul ball tossed up from the Nats' bullpen), BP turned into a headache for my buddy Joe. Joe has figured out a way to get some BP foul balls without bringing a mitt and without asking players for them. He just had procured his second ball of BP when an usher a distance away started browbeating him to "give it to the kids" (a pair who, between them, already had four), and to sit down, because "he already had one". To his credit, Joe, in so many words, told the pushy senior to MYOB.

Update on Joe's situation:

As told by Joe (I wasn't there), he was doing his thing in his usual spot at Sunday's Cubs-Diamondbacks game when he was approached by two Cubs security officers. The officers basically went through the motions with Joe, and gave him no hassle to speak of, but the bottom line is that the cranky old usher who got into it with him 6 days earlier actually registered a complaint with team security in th hopes of getting Joe reprimanded or even kicked out! Great way to treat your fans, Cubbies!

The same day, the same BP, and Joe saw an old-timer usher get in the face of a woman who threw a foul ball back on the field...angry because the ball spilled her beer!

Bottom line, fellow Forum members...if you're coming to a game in Chicago this year, ignore the Unfriendly Confines and visit Comiskey Park/US Cellular Field, where you, as a fan, will not be treated like something a dog left behind that was just stepped in.


.

Dave M.
Chicago area

GO BLACKHAWKS!!

[apfriz]

Re: Pushy senior ushers at the Unfriendly Confines

I must say that I am completely on the fence with this one...as a kid who used to be one of the first to bp for the chance to get a ball, i remember being very disappointed when I couldnt get a good spot, because a couple of 'grown ups' seemingly had the best spots.

As a parent, going to a game now, I want nothing more than the chance to bring my two girls home a ball !

I went to the Phillies - Dodgers playoff game in '08 and actually caught a foul off of James Loney...We were right next to the Dodger family section, and one of the kids from that section, cute as a button, even with his dodger shirt on came up and asked me for the ball ?? Clearly the parents told him to do so, but sheepishly, amidst all the peer-pressure, I told the young kid 'no, its for my daughter, sorry...'

I will throw this out as a theory....perhaps many of these ushers that have been around for a while have seen a change from the days of 'the innocent chase of a catching a ball' to now seeing men out hustle the kids for these balls knowing they are going to flip them for cash with no interest in keeping them. As an usher, maybe they figure, what little they can do, they will....after all, it will be the kids that determine the future of the game, and as an usher, what better to see than the brightness on a kid's face with a ball in his hand.

I do NOT think usher's should play a roll in trying to get a fan tossed for trying to get some souvnr balls...I agree that this is absurd....

Being to Wrigley as a teen though, I must say it is a great great park, and really suprised to hear the experience was bad enough to not even recommend going there....hope it turns around out there...

[sox83cubs84]

Re: Pushy senior ushers at the Unfriendly Confines

apfriz:

I can appreciate your inability to take a stance on this one. The Loney story, though, illustrates exactly why the kids annoy me. You catch it fair and square, and then some brat, often put up by his parents, puts you on te spot by asking for it. How does one know that the parents won't place it on eBay? Or, some loudmouth who can't mind his own business screams at you to give it to a kid.

I have given kids baseballs, but do so at my own choosing (I tell the loudmouths to catch one themselves if they want to give it to a kid so bad). I also give it to someone out of my immediate area, as the kids themselves around me have far better luck asking for a baseball than I would. Plus, the kids, for the most park, have no shame in being greedy and trying to load up...I saw a kid with his dad get 7 baseballs one day at Wrigley...the dad caught one, while the rugrat begged for 6! A kid whines for 6 baseballs, gets them, and the team wants to hassle my buddy Joe becaue he got 2? Sorry, that's not right.

Dave M.
Chicago area
New Fan of ALL Arizona teams.

[apfriz]

Re: Pushy senior ushers at the Unfriendly Confines

I tell the loudmouths to catch one themselves if they want to give it to a kid so bad...

I like this theory.....it reminds me of a similar situation that drives me nuts..

When the Phillies opened Citizens Bank Park, they started throwing the opponents HR balls back onto the field....I think this is dumb for two reasons...

1. It never has been a Phillies tradition and I have been going to games since '76...it was blatantly stolen from the cubs fans
2. the same people place the same peer pressure on the fans to throw the balls back!

I can tell you if I caught a HR ball, even if a NY Met hit it, Im not throwing it back !!!

I am curious to how the Cubs fans handle it when the fan doesnt want to throw it back....

[xpress34]

Re: Pushy senior ushers at the Unfriendly Confines

Hey all...

I've been 'lurking' and following this thread with much interest for sometime.

My personal opinion is if I get the ball, it's mine - PERIOD. No ifs and/or butts about it - and here's why...

I'm 46 years old and I spend (and have spent) a TON on tickets, gear, cards, memorabilia, etc and since the inception of the Texas Rangers in 1972 and the Colorado Rockies in 1993 and including various Minor League tilts, I have attended close to if not more than 1,000 MLB games in my life... and I have exactly ONE Foul Ball and ONE Home Run ball that I caught or retrieved during a game.

MLB uses over 10 dozen balls a game on average, so 10x12 = 120 x 1,000 = 120,000 so for me the odds have been about 1 in 60,000 to get a ball (foul or HR) during my 'MLB' lifetime. I got my Foul Ball in 2003 and the HR was Eric Young Jr's 1st MLB Homer at Coors Field last year, so those 'rugrats' can wait their turn.

I also study players and get to know something about them to chat with them about and have gotten many balls directly from players (and then have people hassling me over them - for their kids). I owe these balls to someone else why? And why does it matter if I've gotten 1 or 20 or 200 from players? I get them because I ask politely and I can talk to them about something other than their HR last night, etc.

If the parents aren't willing (as others have said) to invest the time - not only to be there early like myself, but also in teaching their kids manners - it's not my problem.

Luckily most of the ushers at Coors Field where I hang out know that I have been collecting for a long time and that I follow the rules and I am polite to both them and the players.

Many of you here have heard about my 'connection' with Matt Holliday and the fact that Matt will single me out and sign multiples for my collection - I've had people hear me talking with my friends about actually ask if I could take their item to get signed for their kid while I'm chatting with Matt. I'm sorry, but I worked hard on my collection and although Matt and I aren't 'friends' (we don't have each others numbers or hang out), I would never risk the trust I have built with Matt since 2002 on something like that.

That said, I do use the 'ins' that I have or know to help at my choice - for example... at a Rox ST game at Hi Corbett this past spring, some guys were pestering the Rox pitching staff for a ball for two little boys. Finally, someone threw one up. Just one. Then the two boys started fighting (they were like 5 and 6) over the ball and the dad looked frustrated as to how to sort it out. I went down to the rail where Mark Stritmatter (Rox Bull Pen Catcher) was sitting and chatted with him about the situation and he handed me a ball without hesitation. I could have kept it, but I took it over and gave it to the one boy who didn't have a ball and all was right with the world.

If an usher at ANY stadium ever gives me grief for chasing autos or getting a ball, I will certainly give them an earful about who pays for what - it's not just the players that our ticket purchases pay for, its the ushers and everyone else who works for the team as well and sometimes they need to be reminded of that.

Sorry for the long winded rant, but I just needed to get it out.

All the best -

Chris

[sox83cubs84]

Re: Pushy senior ushers at the Unfriendly Confines

I tell the loudmouths to catch one themselves if they want to give it to a kid so bad...

I like this theory.....it reminds me of a similar situation that drives me nuts..

When the Phillies opened Citizens Bank Park, they started throwing the opponents HR balls back onto the field....I think this is dumb for two reasons...

1. It never has been a Phillies tradition and I have been going to games since '76...it was blatantly stolen from the cubs fans
2. the same people place the same peer pressure on the fans to throw the balls back!

From Dave M.:

I have caught 5 visiting home runs at the Unfriendly Confines...3 inside and 2 outside. I have never once thrown the home run or a dummy ball back. Inside, I just stick it in my pocket, let them taunt me as much as they choose, and smile and wave at them, or hold my hand by my ear as to say "I can't hear you".

Outside, both times I have bent over, pointed to my rear end, and then made a motion as if I were blowing a kiss.

The bleacher drunks at Wrigley can be as bad as the Philly fans...alcohol+peer pressure=disaster waiting to happen.

Personally, I hope some fan who catches a home run in the bleachers one day will be attacked by the drunks...then said fan can sue the Cubs (and their security) and give the Flubs a PR nightmare they truly deserve.

Dave M.
Chicago area





I can tell you if I caught a HR ball, even if a NY Met hit it, Im not throwing it back !!!

I am curious to how the Cubs fans handle it when the fan doesnt want to throw it back....

GO BLACKHAWKS!

[legaleagle92481]

Re: Pushy senior ushers at the Unfriendly Confines

I tell the loudmouths to catch one themselves if they want to give it to a kid so bad...

I like this theory.....it reminds me of a similar situation that drives me nuts..

When the Phillies opened Citizens Bank Park, they started throwing the opponents HR balls back onto the field....I think this is dumb for two reasons...

1. It never has been a Phillies tradition and I have been going to games since '76...it was blatantly stolen from the cubs fans
2. the same people place the same peer pressure on the fans to throw the balls back!

I can tell you if I caught a HR ball, even if a NY Met hit it, Im not throwing it back !!!

I am curious to how the Cubs fans handle it when the fan doesnt want to throw it back....

Throwing balls back is such a waste even from a common player it would be something really cool to catch and have a story about it is not like throwing it back saves the runs and you risk hitting a player on your team in the outfield.