Not worth dying for

There are a lot of things that I would risk my life for. My family members, $1 million and a bag of Herr's potato chips (I've been on a diet for the last few months) are just a few examples. Catching a foul ball is definitely not going to find a space on the list. Is it something I've always wanted to do? Absolutely. I've come really close to catching one on more than one occasion...

1) Citizens Bank Park 2006: I had just returned from a vacation with my family in Florida. There I purchased a screaming yellow track jacket from a Puma outlet store. It was perfect jacket weather the night of the game so I figured it would be the right time to test out my new outerwear. David Ortiz came up and smacked a monster home run heading right to me. I stood up prepared to make a jump for it, or even push the small child in front of me out of the way if need be. The girl I was with was definitely not interested in this but I sure could have used her assistance. The ball started to descend and came right at the kid in front of me. My heart pulled through and wouldn't allow me to push him. The ball hit him square in the chest and his dad was able to recover the souvenir.

2) Fenway Park mid 90's: I can't recall the exact year but Mo Vaughn was still with the Red Sox. My dad had purchased tickets in the outfield for a nice afternoon game. The fans in front of me had painted a sheet to look like a bulls eye with the words, "Hit It Here Mo," written on it. Sure enough, Vaughn got a hold of one and it started coming our way. Believe it or not, that ball came right to the people in front of me and they caught it in the bulls eye. That was one of the most incredible things I've ever seen at a game.

I know both of those events were for home run balls and not foul balls but I usually sit in the outfield so I don't come across foul balls all that much. They're pretty equal in my book anyway.

This subject popped into my head after I saw that a fan in Texas fell over 30 feet while leaning over the railing to catch a foul ball in the Rangers vs Indians game on Tuesday night. Unfortunately there is no video of the fall but thankfully the man was reportedly doing well and moving all extremities after he was taken out of the stadium. There is video of the players and umpire watching it happen and just the sheer look of horror on their faces is unreal. I have witnessed a man keel over and die no more than 6 feet away from me at a gym and it is quite surreal. You feel so helpless but can't stop watching at the same time. Again, thankfully this man is expected to make a full recovery but there's a lesson to be learned here. Foul balls are not worth dying for.