Phillies

Video: Interfering Fans Speak

By Kyle Scott

Published: Sep 5th, 2011 · 10:37 AM EDT

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Sun Sentinel (quote not part of video):

“The Phillies are 45 games (actually 41) over .500,” Fitzhenry said. “Get over it.”

 

South Florida students Alex Dicandio and Augie Fitzhenry (Alex and Augie? That's unfortunate) spoke with Mike Berardino of the Sun Sentinel after the game yesterday. The two friends made the drive over from Tampa as part of a “man's weekend.” Cool, guys.

 

Get over it quote notwithstanding, I’m not sure crucifying these guys is worth the effort. I’ve never caught a ball at a baseball game (save for a freebie from Phil Coke during batting practice of Game 4 of the 2009 World Series). I’ve scrambled for a few, had several hit within a few feet of me, and seen a number of folks lose their footing reaching for one (the dead father in Texas comes to mind). If you’ve ever been in any of those situations, or the conundrum Alex and Augie found themselves in yesterday, then you probably understand that when reaching for a wayward ball hit by a professional baseball player, you temporarily lose all sense of time and place. Human instinct, for most, is to reach for any ball floating in their direction. The balls slice, spin, and hiss their way through the air, turning what at first looked like a lazy pop up – the kind you remember from Little League – into a tightly wound frisbee. What may have looked like a ball destined to land in your lap, quickly becomes an object that evades your grasp. That’s what happened to Alex and Augie.

There’s a reason why we see this time and time again: people simply can’t judge whether a fly ball is going to land in or out of play. Had a stiff breeze sauntered through Sun Life Stadium while Pence’s faux-double spun through the air, the ball would have hit Augie square in the nuts (man's weekend, yo). Instead, the ball sliced about six inches below the yellow line, and, since most awkward college kids aren’t professional baseball players, Alex and Augie reached for the ball, thinking it was fair game. In a way, should MLB overturn the play and allow the game to be replayed from the sixth inning (highly unlikely), their mistake may wind up helping the Phillies. Chances are Bryan Peterson would have caught that ball, anyway. That said, let this serve as a reminder to those of you with first row seats for the playoffs. The circumstance dictates the response…