Ummmm...what???

by Adam J. Morris on Aug 27, 2008 11:35 AM CDT

Did anyone else see this last night?

Kansas City Royals outfielder Jose Guillen had to be restrained from a heckling fan during a 2-1 loss to the Texas Rangers on Tuesday night.
Kauffman Stadium security removed the fan, who started in on Guillen after he stopped at first base in the second inning after hitting a drive off the wall in left field.

"When I got that hit to left field, that guy started saying all kinds of stuff. 'Why didn't I make it to second?'" Guillen said. "Hey, I hit the ball hard. People who know baseball know the guy [Rangers left fielder Marlon Byrd] made a nice play. I had no chance to make it to second. I can deal with that."

When Guillen flied out to left to end the fourth, the fan's heckling apparently escalated.

"The [next] at-bat, when I hit the ball to left field, he said the magic words," Guillen said. "Something personal about my family. I don't deal well with that. That's enough right there."

Royals third base coach Luis Silverio and others restrained Guillen, while security led the fan away.

Guillen, who is the highest paid Royal in history at $12 million a year, is hitting .249, but he leads the club with 17 home runs and 80 RBIs. He has one extra base hit -- a home run on Sunday -- in the past 14 games.

"I understand who I am and the money that I'm making," Guillen said. "I understand that I'm hitting .250, and the fans are expecting a lot more than they're seeing. But the word he said, trust me, anybody would want to go there."

I was watching the game, although I admit I wasn't exactly having laser-like focus...but I wasn't aware of this.

Did anyone else notice this last night?

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yeah, they showed it

i don’t know how you missed it. It was between innings, but when they came back from break, they replayed it.

Greatest Inventions Ever? 1. TiVO, 2. Boobs, 3. Baseball

by willamos2 on Aug 27, 2008 11:39 AM CDT 0 recs

I think I was putting my son to bed around then

I saw the Guillen single off the wall. I think around then I went to do family stuff.

by Adam J. Morris on Aug 27, 2008 12:04 PM CDT up 0 recs

thoughts on what the fan said

“The [next] at-bat, when I hit the ball to left field, he said the magic words,” Guillen said. “Something personal about my family. I don’t deal well with that. That’s enough right there.”

My first thought when I read this was:

Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries!

by Royal Swine on Aug 27, 2008 11:44 AM CDT 1 recs

I fart in your general direction!!!!!!

Aikman and Bradshaw?

Please. They are in the same league as Trent Dilfer and Jim McMahon as QBs who were taken to the SB by great Defenses and great Running Games.
-DJCahill

by SarasotaRanger on Aug 27, 2008 12:11 PM CDT up 0 recs

Now go away...

Or I shall taunt you a second time!

"Either we need to re-calibrate our rectangle, or Alfonzo Marquez is not having a good night." - Josh Lewin

by utlonghorn24 on Aug 27, 2008 12:48 PM CDT up 0 recs

Looked like Blalock

asked Guillen about it later when he was a first, and he started going off again. Blalock looked uncomfortable and like he was sorry he asked.

by jcAustin on Aug 27, 2008 11:44 AM CDT 0 recs

"I’m sure you’ve seen Kiker before but I’ll just reiterate that the kid is mean on the mound. He is only 5’10’’ but he is an intimidator. He looks like he hates hitters. He has the juice for pressure situations."
-Jason Parks on Jul 22, 2008 10:08 PM

by Jayslick on Aug 27, 2008 11:47 AM CDT 0 recs

It's real

Immaturity to get so upset by any insult, but I’ve just never understood why it’s such a big deal to insult someone’s family. Just get over it.

by brettgardner on Aug 27, 2008 11:50 AM CDT 0 recs

If you were born in this country, I don't think you'll ever understand.

I’m Portuguese and I can relate if I think the fan said what I think he said. Anyone born outside this country and comes to America, they have a certain respect for their race. To call a black person the N worth, is just as big as calling say an Italian a Gini, and like other insults to other races. The word is suppose to be very degrading. Athletes are professionals and you want them to to act a certain way but Athletes are also humans, they can’t just turn off that emotion. If you’re Italian and your family has been here many generations. That same word might not effect you as much.

by Coolbean04 on Aug 27, 2008 11:58 AM CDT up 0 recs

I agree

I’m with Guillen on this one.

Could the guy have been drunk? Maybe. But there’s no way Guillen could tell.

People often forget the reason why Latin Americans play baseball is so that they can support their families.

by chrisR on Aug 27, 2008 12:49 PM CDT up 0 recs

Yep

It’s the same reason Latrell Sprewell played basketball. Gotta support.

"I’ll say something that doesn’t need context: anyone who is a Mariner’s fan is a douchebag." - FuturePants

by Chase Irwin on Aug 27, 2008 1:55 PM CDT up 0 recs

Shawn Kemp?

by slash on Aug 27, 2008 9:47 PM CDT up 0 recs

Huh?

That’s exclusive to Latin American players? What are the white guys doing it for? Pure love?

by brettgardner on Aug 27, 2008 2:40 PM CDT up 0 recs

Hmm...

I don’t think Chris Young’s family needs that much support from him. I’m pretty sure they’re fine living in Highland Park (if they’re still living there).

In case you haven’t noticed, every baseball player drafted is either coming out of college (where they can give themselves a chance to have a career), or have the opportunity to go to one.

Hell, I’m not saying that’s the only reason they play baseball. But that’s their only way to get out of the island (w/o having to resort to selling drugs). And when they do, they are obliged to help their parents.

by chrisR on Aug 27, 2008 3:08 PM CDT up 0 recs

You're

Making gigantic assumptions. Yeah, if you take one of the richest American players and compare him to one of the poorest Latin American players, I’m sure you’ll find a disparity.

Take a look around, sometime, though. There actually are Latin American people who don’t live in destitution and unconscionable poverty. There actually are American people who don’t grow up in middle class families.

To say that baseball is a person’s only way to “get off the island” is insulting for a couple reasons. One, it presumes that all people want to leave their home country for America, which simply isn’t the case. More importantly, though, it’s insulting to the many families and individuals who have saved and sacrificed to leave in order to find other means of employment here.

People only do things to support themselves and their families. That’s here and anywhere else.

by brettgardner on Aug 27, 2008 3:27 PM CDT up 0 recs

The disparity

lies in the median income of both groups (before they sign with a big league organization). I don’t know if I could find the statistics to prove it but considering the income per capita of the countries, I’m pretty sure there would be a solid correlation (kinda like batting avg vs. BA w/RISP. haha)

You’ve really taken what I said out of context. I never said that Latin American players where the “only” group that support their families.

by chrisR on Aug 27, 2008 4:08 PM CDT up 0 recs

*per capita income

by chrisR on Aug 27, 2008 4:09 PM CDT up 0 recs

Also

Do not misunderstand what I wrote. I never said such situation was “exclusive” to Latin American players. I wanted to make a point of how highly regarded, a family is to an individual from a different culture. Although, I suppose the “support their families” sentence, wasn’t the best way to go.

by chrisR on Aug 27, 2008 3:25 PM CDT up 0 recs

he'll take that out of context too lol

American families aren’t highly regarded to American individuals? lol jk

the point is I think, in our culture insults and words are thrown around loosely in everyday life and they’re just another word and we don’t take them literally like someone from another culture would like per say……“Motherfucker”….that seems to fit in between the lines perfectly to what Jose said and it stands by my point…….

MotherFucker was probably the magic word, and I doubt the guy literally meant that Jose Guillen wails between his mother’s legs but that’s what Jose probably thought of when he heard the word…..in his culture MF probably means you fuck your mom, not that you’re a shitty person like in our culture……that would be my guess by him saying it was 1 word and an insult against his family and obviously a pretty big one for him to go ApeShit

by slash on Aug 27, 2008 10:06 PM CDT up 0 recs

No.

It means the exact same thing.

by brettgardner on Aug 27, 2008 10:19 PM CDT up 0 recs

o well if no culture takes it literally as a word, then maybe just Jose did

because that’s the only word that makes sense in the context he was using and he wouldv’e just took it literally or the guy said the magic word and he meant it like it sounded and proceeded to explain some graphic details on what he did or thought JG did to his Mom……..who knows, I’m done……atleast he didn’t throw a chair in the stands….

by slash on Aug 28, 2008 12:26 AM CDT up 0 recs

That's stupid.

All people of all races need to acquire thicker skin. Epithets and derogatory remarks alone shouldn’t be enough to justify anything more than an eye roll. Now, if somebody is in a position of influence or in a position to materially affect a person by the use of the insult, then that’s different. Definitely not the case here. Just some stupid hothead.

It’s such a silly cop-out to say that people born here could never understand a concept. I’ve lived in different countries for various lengths of time my entire life. There’s nothing inherently different about any country, and there were people in Span and Thailand who let insults just roll right off their backs.

by brettgardner on Aug 27, 2008 2:39 PM CDT up 0 recs

Spain, obviously.

by brettgardner on Aug 27, 2008 3:31 PM CDT up 0 recs

I'm sorry

but fans who yell personal shit at a game from the safe, friendly confines of the stands and are surprised to receive a rebuke are cowards. That turd should’ve gotten his butt whipped before getting ejected.

Oh sorry….. please come forward now, Mr. “it’s his right to scream and yell by virtue of being a paying customer”.

Aikman and Bradshaw?

Please. They are in the same league as Trent Dilfer and Jim McMahon as QBs who were taken to the SB by great Defenses and great Running Games.
-DJCahill

by SarasotaRanger on Aug 27, 2008 12:17 PM CDT up 0 recs

yeah

Someone in the crowd should have started saying stuff about his fat ass and his wifes fat ass and seen what he did then just say “I thought since you were saying shit to him we could say shit to you”

Bryan Smith (12:17:17 PM PT): Justin Smoak and Josh Hamilton. The AL West might just have found their Bash Brothers, v. 2.0.

by bigsteve on Aug 27, 2008 12:22 PM CDT up 0 recs

Clearly

Heckles and insults should be met with threats of physical violence. Especially if my friends are around to hold me back, I will get demonstrably upset to the point that it would be obvious to the verbal aggressor that if not for my restraints they would be in a world of pain. You bet, I’m likely to puff my chest out, too. Perhaps even jam my finger directly at him so that there is no mistake whose ass I would kick if I could, for one second, escape my friends’ grasp. Do not disrespect me.

by Back Door Yakker on Aug 27, 2008 12:55 PM CDT up 1 recs

Hmm?

I’m not sure if you’ve correctly identified my point, so rather than respond, I’ll just ask you to read it again.

by brettgardner on Aug 27, 2008 2:41 PM CDT up 0 recs

I agree . . .

that the player should have the maturity and professionalism to ignore the remarks. I get upset when security doesn’t act more promptly to warn and then eject the offending fan. In my opinion, the paying fans around the heckler shouldn’t have to listen to his foul-mouthed garbage.

by Randy Richardson on Aug 27, 2008 3:02 PM CDT up 0 recs

Now that

I agree with. A general nuisance is definitely not what I was talking about. People don’t have to put up with constant aggravation in whatever forum. I was only referring to words themselves, outside of context and without action.

by brettgardner on Aug 27, 2008 3:07 PM CDT up 0 recs

He shouldn't have done it...

…but I don’t blame the guy. In his comments about it he seems pretty lucid about the whole situation. And, yes, people from other countries see things much differently than we do.

by Black Francis on Aug 27, 2008 2:02 PM CDT 0 recs

Baseball Code of Conduct

Maybe MLB should try to implement a code of conduct for fans like the NFL is implementing this year. It remains to be seen if it will work, but its an interesting idea. And even if it doesn’t work in the NFL (think: Oakland Raiders fans), it could still work in MLB because there is a difference in fan mentality.

One of the interesting ideas in the NFL model is the that any fan can send a text message to report another fan who is being abusive or otherwise violating the codes of conduct.

by NorCalRangersFan on Aug 27, 2008 3:30 PM CDT 0 recs

Interesting idea

I’m all for free speech but there comes a point at which some of the things said at ballparks are simply over the line. Other people have their little kids at the game, you know? And while I’m not a big champion of “protecting” the children of America from bad words, there’s still a line. Where do you draw it, though?

I suppose it should be left up to interpretation by the home team’s ballpark personnel. That may or may not work in all situations. Oakland would be a good example of a place where I don’t think it would work, and Arlington would be a place where I could see the staff being too quick to throw people out. But at least it would allow for “community standards” for lack of a better way of putting it.

If they do adopt such a “code”, it should be posted clearly at all stadium entrances, printed on every ticket and parking pass. And fans who get kicked out should be given their money back unless they ran onto the field, do something equally stupid, or the whole section where they’re sitting has complained about really, really foul and vitriolic language or whatever.

by Black Francis on Aug 27, 2008 3:57 PM CDT up 0 recs