September 19, 2002
Maybe Pepper Spray Is Too
Maybe Pepper Spray Is Too Good For Some Fans? That's the only conclusion I can draw after watching two shirtless men rush onto the field at Comiskey Park in Chicago to attack Kansas City Royals first base coach Tom Gamboa. There's scant explanation for what happened, other than Brian Kenny on ESPN's Baseball Tonight relaying news that Gamboa was unhurt. Once everyone knew what was going on, the entire Royals bench emptied to come to Gamboa's rescue.
More details as they become available.
UPDATE: Turns out that one of the "fans" actually had a knife, though he didn't use it on Gamboa, who left the field with a bump on his head and bleeding, but otherwise unharmed.
ANOTHER UPDATE: The fans were a father and son team, with the son being just 15 years old. Here's a description from the Chicago Tribune (registration required):
Players and coaches come to Gamboa's aid.
Authorities this morning identified the father as William Ligue Jr., 34, of the 3400 block of West 125th Street, Alsip. He was charged with one count of aggravated battery and is expected to appear in bond court later today, police said.
Ligue's son is 15 years old and lives in Blue Island, according to police. He was charged as a juvenile with two counts of aggravated battery and was released to his mother this morning.
"He flipped us off. He got what he deserved," the youth told a WGN-Ch. 9 camera crew Thursday night as police led him away from Comiskey.
The Tribune has an excellent coverage package, including a photo gallery and a rather active message board, but again, it's behind that annoying registration requirement. There's no such requirement at the Chicago Sun-Times, but there coverage is pretty paper thin, with the current edition failing to list the identity of the attackers, as the Tribune did.
Meanwhile, ESPN's Dan Patrick scores the big scoop, getting an on-air interview with Gamboa. To see commentary from ESPN's Baseball Tonight crew, click here. For some fan reaction narrated by Rich Eisen, click here. As you might imagine, ESPN is the place to go for the best coverage with Fox and Sportsline sticking with wire reports to fill the gap.
ANOTHER UPDATE: Fellow sports blogger, Dan Lewis, says we shouldn't be giving these yahoos so much attention:
Fox has a policy for its Saturday Game of the Week that, whenever some boob jumps onto the field an streaks, dances, whatever, they turn the cameras to a player. And not to the boob. It's a good policy, because you shouldn't reward scofflaws and criminals with the fame they so desire. CNN.com (and, by extention, SI) apparently doesn't get this, because they've plastered the CNN front page with the story. And with the picture of the idiots.
Besides the fact that there's more important news out there -- heck, there's more important baseball news out there -- CNN should be ashamed. As should ESPN and anyone else who puts the picture up. It's not like these guys have a political agenda (at least I suspect not); they're in it for the flashbulbs. Don't give it to them.
I have to respectfully disagree. The attack on Gamboa is news, and not using it would be akin to a news operation failing to use photographs or video footage of an attack on a person in the street in broad daylight. (Although in a tip to Dan, I've posted a picture in which the morons who attacked Gamboa are completely obscured by a horde of Royals players and coaches.) As for Fox's policy not to air the antics tha disrupt play during the broadcast of the game, I understand their point and concur.
CNN indeed does have a photo gallery as well as a listing of other incidences of on-field fan violence.
YET ANOTHER UPDATE: Here's another view, this time from the Kansas City Star by Royals beat writer Bob Dutton. No new details here, although it seems clear the knife mentioned on virtually all of the coverage was merely a pocket knife. The Star's Dick Kaegel also has a piece recounting fan misbehavior in the past.
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10:26 PM