Josh Hamilton Stays Fan Friendly

Josh Hamilton trying to be a nice guy contributed to the tragic death of a fan. The horror of watching 39-year-old fan Shannon Stone over-reach for a tossed free baseball from the Texas Rangers outfielder and then plummet 20 feet to his death off a balcony in the middle of last summer stuck with Hamilton the rest of the season.

Not his fault, but how could it not bother him? He recently said that he is going to continue to toss balls to fans in the stands in 2012 when he ends up with the catch for the third out at the end of an inning–and he is correct to do so.

What happened to Stone, who was seeking to grab a ball to give to his son as a souvenir of their day at the ballpark is a fluke, an act of God type of accident like getting hit by lightning. It was a crazy circumstance, a moment of leaning too far and keeping your eye on the ball instead of being conscious of safey.

Every single baseball fan who has ever passed through the turnstiles of a Major League ballpark has at least given passing thought to catching a foul ball or a home run and taking the ball home as a keepsake to save, to give to a child at home, or a grandchild elsewhere. Depending on the location of a seat the odds shift in likelihood that the ball will come their way, but you can’t tell me they haven’t at least considered the possibility.

Likewise, some fans put too much store in chasing down a ball, elbowing out their neighbhors, taking silly risks trying to make catches as if they will get All-Star game votes if they make the grab cleanly. Common sense does sometimes get shoved aside, along with the people sitting in the next couple of seats.

It was not a rash act on Hamilton’s part, but what seemed to be a good public relations move at the time. Millionaire ballplayers are frequently criticized as being out of touch with the average fan and take heat for charging big bucks for autographs, too. Hamilton was merely connecting with a fan seated near his right-field position. Made sense. More players should think that way.

But Stone was apparently overzealous in the slightest manner, pleased to see one of the top players in the American League gently tossing a ball his way. No one excorciated Hamilton for doing so, nor should they have.

The last thing we need is to have a player be ripped for trying to do something nice. Hamilton said he is going to keep it up, giving away those free baseballs, and the odds of something so tragic occurring again are miniscule.

There was no blame on the player in this incident and let us hope Hamilton’s efforts to inject a personal touch into his play continues and he still reaches out to make fans happy.