Tuesday during the Cubs/Giants' game, every Cubs' fan's favorite whipping boy, Latoya Hawkins, gave up the game-tying homerun to Michael Barrett in the ninth -- his 2nd blown lead in as many games. Mr. Hawkins, who was traded by the Cubs to the Giants in May because of his pitiful performances out of the pen, was roundly booed. Moreover, fans began chanting "Hawkins sucks" which lasted into the 10th inning.

Perspective: when Hawkins was a member of the Cubs, he would routinely blast the fans because of the way they rode him when entering games. The problem -- Hawkins' history of blown saves (particuarly in the fateful game last year against the Mets that eventually cost them the Wild Card) did nothing to help matters. In short, the fans did make a point to loudly boo Hawkins when with the Cubs, but Hawkins did nothing to stop it both in terms of what he said to the media about the fans and, importantly, through is performance on the field.

After the game on Tuesday, Dusty Baker openly criticized Cubs' fans for the way they treated Hawkins during Tuesday's game, even though Hawkins plays for the Giants. Some Cubs' players contributed to the "lecture" to Cubs' fans. Baker went so far as to suggest that some opposing players that are potential free agents have gone up to him to express concerns about considering Chicago because of the way the fans treat the players.

Here's the thing -- booing and chanting have always been a part of the game. If the players are booing players on the teams they root for, there generally is a reason for it (under performance, off-field incidences (e.g., Kenny Rogers)).

So the question is, do fans have a right to boo? If so, is there a line they shouldn't cross, such as booing home team players, getting personal, etc.? And are players really that thin-skinned?

I find Baker's comments ridiculous. Cubs' fans are passionate -- they will boo when Cubs don't perform. Also, the 2003 season raised the stakes -- the fans no longer want to be known as loveable losers. Their money allows the club to spend $90 million on payroll. Stop worrying about fans and their treatment of opposing players and start worrying about winning. After all, winning makes all the boo-birds go away.

they have a right.

lines not to be crossed:

any issue not directly involved with player performance.
everything must be verbal or gesticulative.

so we can't boo kenny rogers for throwing a cameraman's camera on the ground, and we can't boo john rocker because...well, because he's john rocker?

Fans certainly have the right to boo...they are paying customers, and the players are at their mercies as such, cheering or booing.

That being said, is it classless? Yes. Should Hawkins be booed? No, Dusty Baker should be for trying to put the square peg (Hawkins, 8th inning specialist, reason he was brought to the team) in the round hole (closer role, failed at it with the Twins, sucked at it again with the Cubs all through '04, still put him there in '05, became a head case and had to be traded).

**dupe**

Two things: (1) I've never heard a coach or manager criticize his own team's fans for booing an opposing player like Baker did (as far as I'm concerned, Baker's asking for it -- you shouldn't really criticize your own fans); (2) I think it can exceed performance -- like Knuckles said, John Rocker and Kenny Rogers are two prime examples of when off-field performances warrant booing.

Booing is part of the game. If players such as Andrian Beltre sign $60 million contracts yet hit for shit, fans have a right to boo.

The question is, does booing serve a purpose other than expressing a fan's disapproval for the player or performance? Is it counterproductive?

the cameraman incident was related to his performance as a player. it was baseball related, in other words.

as for rocker, is should make an addendum that includes behavior that is completely repudiated by society. also, the booing fans can't be hypocrites, which means new yorkers and philadelphians shouldn't boo pretty much anyone.

sorry, but if a guy is caught in a hotel room with a hooker and a pile of blow two nights before the game, then fans should be allowed to give the guy a hard time.

I would draw the line at making comments about a player's family - but his own behavior is fair game.

read above post, please

so the rednecks and white trash across American have the right to boo?

depends.

Of course we have the right to boo. Have you seen how much we pay for tickets??? Have you seen the salaries these players make???


IBTL

that was pretty awesome. this post started off with a sense-quotient of zero, and then just got less and less sensical as it went on. good work.

What does the player's salary have anything to do with whether or not you can boo?

Are you guys kidding? You're kidding, right?

When someone is making bazillions of dollars and they're constantly out there in the spotlight, booing is going to come with the territory if you suck it up. And if a player can't handle the booing, then he can cry about it in his Bentley on the way driving home to his multi-million dollar mansion on the water.

does the mansion float?

Yes, we can boo. People have booed bad entertainment since the dawn of time. Don't want to be booed? Then fucking perform.

If anyone wants an MP3 of the Lee Elia meltdown, let me know.

who cares about john rocker?

of course they have a right to boo.....but i dont think in this case it makes sense. Booing Hawkins while he plays for another team doesnt fall into the case of underperforming or what have you. He was working for another team and to boo him for whatever he did 2 months ago makes no sense at all, its silly.

If he played for the cubs, heck yeah boo him....the fans are paying his salary to see him win...fans spend too much money to not be met halfway by the organization and when they boo its them saying they arent happy with said player or team.

duracell