Etiquette

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NothingButTheTruth

Well-known member
Seems like most folks are clueless about etiquette at baseball games. This is especially true when you are in the stands watching your team play, and fans for the following game walk right in front of every one.....during game play. Can't wait for the short break between batters or better yet change of inning....must get to my seat NOW.

Also, don't people realize that you sit on the same side as your team's dugout?

Guessing that these folks are the same people that drive in the passing lane like it is their own personal road. Clueless.
 
 
This drives me crazy at minor league games. I've been to a few games, Indianapolis Indians for one, where the ushers actually stand at the top of the stairs and won't let people go back to their seats until their is a break in play....though unfortunately they can't stop people from leaving their seats and walking out. It really drives me crazy when you are in an area that is prone to foul balls. 1) the people going in and out aren't paying attention....and 2) I can't see when they are in my way. If anyone has ever been to a game where a line drive foul ball has hit the seat next to you and cracked it, you'd understand (yes, that happened). Maybe it would help if teams made a quick announcement right before the first pitch???
 
NothingButTheTruth said:
Seems like most folks are clueless about etiquette at baseball games. This is especially true when you are in the stands watching your team play, and fans for the following game walk right in front of every one.....during game play. Can't wait for the short break between batters or better yet change of inning....must get to my seat NOW.

Also, don't people realize that you sit on the same side as your team's dugout?

Guessing that these folks are the same people that drive in the passing lane like it is their own personal road. Clueless.
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I don't get the people not understanding you sit on the same side as your team part either. I had a family do that to me the other day. They sat next to my dugout the entire game. What made it worse was it was the family of the other head coach, so if anyone should know etiquette it should be them. But that's not even the part that really bugged me. It was the fact that they sat where my book usually sits. That's what really got under my skin.
 
I confess that my kids have played on teams where I refuse to sit near the other parents on our team. I wouldn’t crowd the opponents’ dugout but when Pops sits there yelling at kids or throwing up his arms or constantly criticizes our coach, I can’t take it. But, I don’t say a word when I sit on your side; I just watch the game.
 
Three boys all played HS, travel and college baseball. I’m at right/left field down the line guy. Loved my conversations with fathers of the same ilk, opponents or not. Great days. Now I’m onto sons coaching and grandsons. Best ever.
 
tcgobucks said:
This drives me crazy at minor league games. I've been to a few games, Indianapolis Indians for one, where the ushers actually stand at the top of the stairs and won't let people go back to their seats until their is a break in play....though unfortunately they can't stop people from leaving their seats and walking out. It really drives me crazy when you are in an area that is prone to foul balls. 1) the people going in and out aren't paying attention....and 2) I can't see when they are in my way. If anyone has ever been to a game where a line drive foul ball has hit the seat next to you and cracked it, you'd understand (yes, that happened). Maybe it would help if teams made a quick announcement right before the first pitch???
Click to expand...
Not a lot to do with etiquette so much as watching the game. First thing my Dad told me when we went to our first game was "Keep your eye on the ball". Okay cool. That all came back to me 35 years later at Memorial stadium Baltimore. Down the left field foul line, foul ball about 30 feet to our right hits someone. All concerned the people hovered around the person hit, nobody watching the game, second foul ball takes down a second person same area. Somebody in the group finally thought to watch the game and two pitches later caught the next foul ball hit their way. "Keep your eye on the ball"
 
USA70PP said:
Not a lot to do with etiquette so much as watching the game. First thing my Dad told me when we went to our first game was "Keep your eye on the ball". Okay cool. That all came back to me 35 years later at Memorial stadium Baltimore. Down the left field foul line, foul ball about 30 feet to our right hits someone. All concerned the people hovered around the person hit, nobody watching the game, second foul ball takes down a second person same area. Somebody in the group finally thought to watch the game and two pitches later caught the next foul ball hit their way. "Keep your eye on the ball"
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It's kinda both. First you're blocking the view of the people you're walking in front of while the game is going on....that's the etiquette part. Second, you're putting those same people in danger if you're in their way and they don't see a foul ball coming toward them until it's too late. Again, etiquette.....and third....they are putting themselves in danger by not knowing that they need to be paying attention while the game is going on....instead of looking down at the ground or shuffling their food around so they can sit down......that part is just stupidity lol
 
I have went to 4 different parks this yr to watch games. 2 had the Stands/Bleachers blocked off with caution tape, 1 had stands open with Social Distancing sign reminders and the other was just open,normal and pretty full of people. Etiquette is the same thing now as common decency, very hard to find.
 
NothingButTheTruth said:
Seems like most folks are clueless about etiquette at baseball games. This is especially true when you are in the stands watching your team play, and fans for the following game walk right in front of every one.....during game play. Can't wait for the short break between batters or better yet change of inning....must get to my seat NOW.

Also, don't people realize that you sit on the same side as your team's dugout?

Guessing that these folks are the same people that drive in the passing lane like it is their own personal road. Clueless.
Click to expand...
Not to be combative, but some parents like to sit where they can look into the dugout, and you have to be on the opposite side to do that.

Also, and I like to do this at games. You can usually tell how good or bad a team is by how closely the parent sit together. The good teams will generally sit together and talk to each other, the bad ones will spread out and not talk to each other. Some guys will sit as far as humanly possible from the other fans of their team. Just kind of interesting.

I can go to a major league game and sit for 9 innings. I never understand why people go to a game and don't watch it. I'd ban vendors from major league games too. I take a little cooler into the game, have my own snacks.
 
GCPRO said:
Three boys all played HS, travel and college baseball. I’m at right/left field down the line guy. Loved my conversations with fathers of the same ilk, opponents or not. Great days. Now I’m onto sons coaching and grandsons. Best ever.
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guys that are right field/ left field line guys usually get banished down that way from the home plate umpire!! Ha!
 
I appreciate the love but not my game. I coached the game for 35 years, tossed once. Umpired for 15 and tossed no one.
Basically just a loner.
Went to my one and only HS game of 2020 last night. Our HS played a senior/alumni ballgame last night to honor the seniors.
 
I won't sit anywhere but far down the lines. Impossible for me to sit closer and listen to the stupidity of people. I especially can't stand the ones that act like they know the game inside and out, but don't . Sorry, but a good amount of people would be better served keeping their mouths shut. The grandstanding coaches are unbearable as well. Love the coaches that show respect to the game and encourage their players.

How about the parents that act like their kids are Babe Ruth? Of course, their kids never do anything wrong. Lot of ignorance out there!
 
I love it when parents complain about the other team getting rowdy in the dugout, but then turn around and complain their dugout does not have any life!

I can usually tell who is winning at these youth games pretty quickly (since most do not bother to turn on the scoreboards....) but just watching the parents for a short time. Winning--smokin and jokin, losing- all glum and complaining
 
I love baseball but have to keep away from most of it today because of how crazy the parents have gotten. Everyone is an "expert." Every dad is a swing doctor and pitching expert and everyone's kid WILL play for the Yankees. Probably HOF material.

Most Minor League/Big League games have become something "to-do." Most are there to socialize, eat, and drink, and tell everyone they went to a game.

I like summer college ball because there are few parents. Good single A ball. Kids playing their hearts out for a spot higher. No parents.
 
GCPRO said:
I appreciate the love but not my game. I coached the game for 35 years, tossed once. Umpired for 15 and tossed no one.
Basically just a loner.
Went to my one and only HS game of 2020 last night. Our HS played a senior/alumni ballgame last night to honor the seniors.
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Heard about your event from two different parents in the last couple of days. Sounds like a nice memory for the class of 2020. On the other hand, my son's last memory of high school baseball went down like this: Drove to the field, dropped off the uniform on a designated spot on the parking lot and waived to coaches 100 feet away. And that was it..... Another local private school somehow found a way to have banquet kind of thing.
 
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GCPRO said:
I appreciate the love but not my game. I coached the game for 35 years, tossed once. Umpired for 15 and tossed no one.
Basically just a loner.
Went to my one and only HS game of 2020 last night. Our HS played a senior/alumni ballgame last night to honor the seniors.
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I believe on Monday our school did something like that in conjunction with the pseudo ACME game where the Seniors were honored and I do believe played a little bit.
 
I do have a question for y'all, it is sort of an etiquette i guess.

Who decides the "rules/stipulations" you will go by in a game. Example: Visiting team wants both teams to use BBCOR bats for the game. As a home coach, do you bow down to that?

Always been my impression is "My field, my rules" when a visiting team wanted to do something not ordinary such as use and extra hitter, or courtesy runner, etc. (I know, many of these places do those normally at the younger levels but we typically always played it by the OBR)
 
If not stated in the league "rules" it is usually agreed upon by the coaching staffs when I've been involved. HS scrimmages is where I notice some things that will raise an eyebrow. I guess I'm just too competitive in wanting to win every time we are on the field but I've seen them where their 3-4 hitters get an AB like very other inning. HS scrimmage in which a very good player coming back from an injury led off each inning for 7 full. That kid just signed a MLB free agent deal. Pinch hitting their "guy" in a late inning RBI situation and the kid was already in the lineup. None of those matter I realize but you just have to LOL.
 
NothingButTheTruth said:
Seems like most folks are clueless about etiquette at baseball games. This is especially true when you are in the stands watching your team play, and fans for the following game walk right in front of every one.....during game play. Can't wait for the short break between batters or better yet change of inning....must get to my seat NOW.

Also, don't people realize that you sit on the same side as your team's dugout?

Guessing that these folks are the same people that drive in the passing lane like it is their own personal road. Clueless.
Click to expand...

Probably the same people who linger and talk while waiting for the coaches to dismiss the kids and obstruct the view of the parents arriving for the next game...

More of a problem at soccer tournaments where games can start as early as 5-10 minutes after the previous game ends - especially the huge preseason HS tournaments where teams are playing 7 or 8 forty minute games over a weekend. Just pick your chairs up and move back about 10 yards, people. Not that hard...

My baseball specific rant is about teams trying to enter the dugout immediately after the previous game ends. Boys, put your equipment bags down the line in the OF and start warming up. Give us a chance to clean up and get out of your way.
 
Obstcut the view of the parents arriving for the next game? The view of what? Kids stretching and throwing in the OF? We already established they dont take INF OF so you arent watching that!

What I hate is the parents from the next game who hover close like jackals on a fresh kill! Give 'em room man!


rossford_resident said:
Probably the same people who linger and talk while waiting for the coaches to dismiss the kids and obstruct the view of the parents arriving for the next game...

More of a problem at soccer tournaments where games can start as early as 5-10 minutes after the previous game ends - especially the huge
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thavoice said:
I believe on Monday our school did something like that in conjunction with the pseudo ACME game where the Seniors were honored and I do believe played a little bit.
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They have like 5 seniors playing. They will play until June 30. Some schools have a good bit of seniors playing....some don't.
 
I helped out at a local 10U tournament. Had a card table set up just left of the 1st base dugout so I could keep an official book. Had a dad set up to our left-which put him pretty close to home plate, right up against the fence. Then when opposing team batted,this guy starts chattering....saying "Hey batter" "Better swing at this next pitch" "Swing!!"....stuff like this...Is this the norm for travel tournaments? (This wasn't a travel team tournament but a league All-star Team tournament) You don't even hear kids chatter like that anymore......
 
fortfan said:
I helped out at a local 10U tournament. Had a card table set up just left of the 1st base dugout so I could keep an official book. Had a dad set up to our left-which put him pretty close to home plate, right up against the fence. Then when opposing team batted,this guy starts chattering....saying "Hey batter" "Better swing at this next pitch" "Swing!!"....stuff like this...Is this the norm for travel tournaments? (This wasn't a travel team tournament but a league All-star Team tournament) You don't even hear kids chatter like that anymore......
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Was the parent "special" because that is what it seems.......
 
fortfan said:
I helped out at a local 10U tournament. Had a card table set up just left of the 1st base dugout so I could keep an official book. Had a dad set up to our left-which put him pretty close to home plate, right up against the fence. Then when opposing team batted,this guy starts chattering....saying "Hey batter" "Better swing at this next pitch" "Swing!!"....stuff like this...Is this the norm for travel tournaments? (This wasn't a travel team tournament but a league All-star Team tournament) You don't even hear kids chatter like that anymore......
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:p

My wife was talking to the mother of one of our kids' classmates at a 9/10 game several years ago when her son hit a pop up near first base. Mother stopped in mid sentence to scream "miss it!" at the top of her lungs.
 
Youth sports is fantastic, for various reasons. I think parents just need to be very grounded and know what the goal of youth sports are. It's not to get scholarships or a trip to the big leagues. You have to understand, based on age, that nearly no one there is going to be a major league baseball player. Yes, people want to win, and it's important to be competitive, but you have to understand it's about development.
 
rossford_resident said:
:p

My wife was talking to the mother of one of our kids' classmates at a 9/10 game several years ago when her son hit a pop up near first base. Mother stopped in mid sentence to scream "miss it!" at the top of her lungs.
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Good stuff.
In Mason over the weekend there was a lady who a couple of times yelled and sounded just like Howard's mom on The Big Bang Theory. It was on another diamond right next to us and the first time it happened we all just paused, and everyone started just laughing.

That kid (and husband) has to be very proud to hear that yell on a constant basis!
 
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