MLB Foul Ball Week in Review (September 19 – September 25): Running the Mile, Gloves and a WAG Snag

The MLB foul ball week in review shows that Major League Baseball ended the week of September 19 – September 25, 2016 with about 164 Foul Ball Facials in 168 days of games. These are only those fans hit in the head area at Major League Baseball games as self-reported on Twitter. That equates to one fan per day of play. It seems like a lot, and it is, but it could be fewer because just over 40% of these tweets indicate the fan wasn’t paying attention. To put that into perspective, it means roughly 45 fans (conservative estimate) would have avoided foul balls to the face had they not been buried in their phones.

But that’s not the only thing going on with foul balls this week. Here’s the rundown of the best and worst foul ball and fan-related actions from the past week…it was also a very slow week:

FLASHING YOUNGSTER FLASHES GLOVE

So many people assert there’s no time to react to a baseball hit at them. Granted, this one did bounce, but it was still going at a good speed. This young man saved the fan next to him. And that guy covered his face with his arms. Plenty of reaction time since both were paying attention.

RUNNING THE MILE IN…

Did you catch this Eduardo Munez catch? The guy hauled it from 3B to snag a ball Buster Posey lost in the lights. Amazing.

 

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Ed Comber (VP Of The BBBA/Owner – foulballz.com)  Follow @foulballz

MLB Foul Ball Week in Review (September 12 – September 18): Glove Theft, Umpire Concussion & a Tooth Lost by a Toss Up

The MLB foul ball week in review shows that Major League Baseball ended the week of September 11 – September 18, 2016 with about 162 Foul Ball Facials in 162 days of games. These are only those fans hit in the head area at Major League Baseball games as self-reported on Twitter. That equates to one fan per day of play. It seems like a lot, and it is, but it could be fewer because just over 40% of these tweets indicate the fan wasn’t paying attention. To put that into perspective, it means roughly 45 fans (conservative estimate) would have avoided foul balls to the face had they not been buried in their phones.

But that’s not the only thing going on with foul balls this week. Here’s the rundown of the best and worst foul ball and fan-related actions from the past week:

BOTCHED BOBBLE

This has to be one of the worst feelings in the world of baseball from a fan’s perspective. It was there. It was right there. But this poor Boston Red Sox fan was denied his foul ball: 

“HOW THE?” IS RIGHT

Washington Nationals’ Ryan Zimmerman managed something I’ve never seen before. He managed to hit himself in the back with his own foul ball. This should count as more proof of the dangers of netting. The foul ball nailed him in the back of the head after it bounced off netting behind home plate in the top of the 8th inning:

 

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Ed Comber (VP Of The BBBA/Owner – foulballz.com)  Follow @foulballz

MLB Foul Ball Week in Review (September 5 – September 11): Jim Joyce Wild Pitch Foul Ball,

The MLB foul ball week in review shows that Major League Baseball ended the week of September 5 – September 11, 2016 with about 156 Foul Ball Facials (#FoulBallFacials) in 155 days of games. These are only those fans hit in the head area at Major League Baseball games as self-reported on Twitter. That equates to one fan per day of play. It seems like a lot, and it is, but it could be fewer since nearly 50% of these tweets indicate the fan wasn’t paying attention. To put that into perspective, it means roughly 65 fans (conservative estimate) would have avoided foul balls to the face had they not been buried in their phones.

But that’s not the only thing going on with foul balls this week. Here’s the rundown of the best and worst foul ball and fan-related actions from the past week:

EMPLOYEE OF THE WEEK

How’s this for a day at work as a non-player? I wonder if they got the Atlanta Braves foul ball certificate. Maybe that doesn’t apply to employees who snag foul balls.

THE JIM JOYCE WILD PITCH

I am not at all a fan of Major League Baseball umpires. I especially dislike Jim Joyce and would love to see him leave the game (I’m a lifelong Tigers fan and the image of him blowing a call that cost Tigers starter Armando Galarraga his perfect game is still very fresh in my memory). Last week, I fell for a “foul ball” call by Joyce. Joyce, behind the dish during the Astros – Cleveland Indians game was brutally maligned on Twitter for a wild pitch call on a Chisenhall at-bat. People, including well-respected reporters all jumped on the “Bash Joyce” bandwagon. I am embarrassed to admit my own distaste for the man colored my response too…until I went to the official Major League Baseball rule book. Then I changed my mind. This is the play that awaken the disdain:

As you can see in the replay, the ball hit the dirt nearly a foot before the plate. How any baseball fan doesn’t see that as a wild pitch is bewildering. Actually, it’s a great deal more complicated than that though. Read on.

 

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Ed Comber (VP Of The BBBA/Owner – foulballz.com)  Follow @foulballz

MLB Foul Ball Week in Review (August 29-September 4): Wicked Spin, Stay Home, a Ballboy Epic Fail and More

Major League Baseball ended the week of August 29-September 4, 2016 with over nearly 150 Foul Ball Facials (#FoulBallFacials) in 148 days of games in this MLB Foul Ball Week in Review. These are only those fans hit in the head area at Major League Baseball games as self-reported on Twitter. That equates to one fan per day of play. It seems like a lot, and it is, but it could be fewer since nearly 50% of these tweets indicate the fan wasn’t paying attention. To put that into perspective, it means roughly 65 fans (conservative estimate) would have avoided foul balls to the face had they not been buried in their phones.

But that’s not the only thing going on with foul balls this week. Here’s the rundown of the best and worst foul ball and fan-related actions from the past week:

TWO YEARS to SUE

It took this woman two years to decide to file a lawsuit. TWO YEARS. Notice the sign in the article? Why did it take 2 years?

WICKED BACKSPIN

The El Paso Chihuahuas may be home to the craziest, most bizarre foul ball turned fair ball in modern ball. It’s beyond explanation and description:

 

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Ed Comber (VP Of The BBBA/Owner – foulballz.com)  Follow @foulballz

MLB Foul Ball Week in Review (August 22-28): Ballboys, Netting Issues and Freddie Freeman’s Fall

Major League Baseball ended the week of August 22-28, 2016 with over nearly 144 Foul Ball Facials (#FoulBallFacials) in 141 games. These are only those fans hit in the head area at Major League Baseball games as self-reported on Twitter. That equates to one fan per day of play. It seems like a lot, and it is, but it could be fewer since nearly 50% of these tweets indicate the fan wasn’t paying attention.

But that’s not the only thing going on with foul balls this week. Here’s the rundown of the best and worst foul ball and fan-related actions from the past week:

MESSING WITH THE BALLBOY

Ballboys and ballgirls have been a staple of foul ball plays for seasons. Some have lightning quick reflexes. Some may be surprised to learn that ballgirls have faster gloves than ballboys. Here’s a perfect example of how ballboys aren’t always the best at doing their job. This young man botched what should have been a reasonably routine play.

The Tampa Bay Rays bullpen decided to take over his job since he wasn’t able to perform his protective duties.

On the other hand, and to be fair, not all ballboys miss routine foul balls. This ballboy for the Toronto Blue Jays had no issues with being calm and making a good, solid snag.

 

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Ed Comber (VP Of The BBBA/Owner – foulballz.com)  Follow @foulballz

MLB Foul Ball Week in Review (August 15-21): Pence Victim of Baseball Gods, Racist Tweet and Using the Force

Major League Baseball ended the week of August 15-21, 2016 with over nearly 140 Foul Ball Facials (#FoulBallFacials) in nearly 135 games. These are only those fans hit in the head area at MLB games as self-reported on Twitter. That equates to one fan per day of play. It seems like a lot, and it is, but over 60% indicate they weren’t paying attention.

But that’s not the only thing going on with foul balls this week. Here’s the rundown of the best and worst foul ball and fan-related actions from the past week:

DID THEY SEE IT?

This. I don’t know how to describe it. Is it The Force being used? Is it something else? An angel in the bullpen? This ball shot past the third base umpire, who moved out of the way quickly, and toward the Cubs bullpen. Every reliever was oblivious to it. The ball appears to careen off something, but again, none of the pitchers seem to even see it. You decide what happened:

Cubs bullpen is oblivious?

UMPIRES

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Ed Comber (VP Of The BBBA/Owner – foulballz.com)  Follow @foulballz

MLB Foul Ball Week in Review: Nacho Face, Dugout Danger and Fan/Player Love During Week of August 7-14

Major League Baseball ended the week of August 8-14, 2016 with over nearly 130 Foul Ball Facials (#FoulBallFacials) in nearly 130 games. These are only those fans hit in the head area at MLB games as self-reported on Twitter. That equates to one fan per day of play. It seems like a lot, and it is, but over 60% indicate they weren’t paying attention.

But that’s not the only thing going on with foul balls this week. Here’s the rundown of the best and worst foul ball and fan-related actions from the past week:

FALLING for FOULS

I admire people who ignore their own personal safety to make a play. But running and leaning over a wall and falling horizontally into the seats is one thing. Jonathan Villar had a different take on this: He went vertical, horizontal and then vertical again, falling into a camera well.

NACHO FACE

First we had nacho ball, now nacho face. This fan, well, just watch.

SANTANA NAILED IN DUGOUT

Carlos Santana was nailed by a foul ball while in Indians dugout. I often have people tell me “There’s netting across the dugouts” as a reason players don’t get hit by balls into the dugout. That is only a perception though. Many players get slammed by foul balls into the dugout. Santan happens to be the most recent:

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Ed Comber (VP Of The BBBA/Owner – foulballz.com)  Follow @foulballz

Foul Ball Week in Review: Joey Votto, Dodgers Ballgirl, and Hunter Pence Make for Interesting First Week of August

Major League Baseball ended the week of August 1 – 7, 2016 with over 120 Foul Ball Facials (#FoulBallFacials) in about 120 games. These are only those fans hit in the head area at MLB games as self-reported on Twitter. That equates to one fan per day of play. It seems like a lot, and it is, but over 60% indicate they weren’t paying attention.

But that’s not the only thing going on with foul balls each week. Here’s the rundown of the best and worst foul ball and fan-related actions from the past week:

JOEY VOTTO NEEDS TO LEARN MANNERS…and does

Votto has gotten a great deal of bad press this season for his antics regarding fan involvement. Last week it looked like he was going for yet another lashing by the media and fans. The interesting thing is he’s Canadian, and they have a well-deserved reputation for being pretty calm folks. Maybe it’s too many years in the U.S. that’s got him so cranky?

Remember this fake out?

 

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Ed Comber (VP Of The BBBA/Owner – foulballz.com)  Follow @foulballz

Foul Ball Month in Review: July Part II, More Umpires Out and a New Ballpark Delicacy is Invented

The second half of July brought more bumps, bruises, happy fans, destroyed umpires and even a new delicacy.

NACHO BALLS

I don’t recall ever hearing about a new ballpark delicacy being born as a direct result of a foul ball. But one was born on July 15, 2016: The Nacho Ball. It occurred during the Padres-Giants game. Check out what happens when Padres third baseman Yangervis Solarte goes for a foul ball:

Take that Prince Fielder.

KIDS KEEP TEACHING US

Kids reactions to foul balls and toss-ups are always fun to watch. They always congratulate one another, celebrating. Rarely do we see kids get angry and upset. That’s a 180 degree difference from the typical “Adult” response. Check out these awesome kids at the Nationals game from whom we could learn a thing or two about kindness:

This young lady had a ball handed to her by the ballgirl. She’s beaming ear to ear as anyone would. But wait for it…she’s nearly tackled by other kids. NOT so they could steal it though. Wait for it…

 

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Ed Comber (VP Of The BBBA/Owner – foulballz.com)  Follow @foulballz

Foul Ball Month in Review: July Part I Includes Tricky Plays and a Nervous Dad

We all would love to snag a foul ball. It’s one of the reasons we love the game of baseball so much. With an historical average of 46 fouls hit and about 25 or so entering the seats each game, there’s plenty of opportunity to get close to one if not to actually grab one. The foul ball is greatly underappreciated though. There are more exciting plays on and off the field invovling foul balls than any other batted ball. That fact stated, let’s revisit some of the best foul ball reltated fun and scorn from the first half of July.

NERVOUS DAD

It was to be one of the happiest days in his life for Tyler Glasnow. He made his Major League debut in early July against the Cardinals. But a foul ball made it somewhat comical. His dad, shortly after being interviewed about his son as Glasnow was at the plate, flubbed a foul ball snag. The cameras caught it all:

FAN SNAGS and FLOPS

I’ve been doing this foul ball thing for four seasons now. One thing is certain, fans will use anything they can to try to catch a foul ball. There are numerous accounts of cups and popcorn buckets being used. Hats are also popular, but in early July there was a new one. It happened at a Giants-Diamondbacks game. A woman used her food tray to try to field a foul ball. It was an epic fail:

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Ed Comber (VP Of The BBBA/Owner – foulballz.com)  Follow @foulballz