Larry Brown Sports

Josh Hamilton’s first series at the Ballpark in Arlington as a member of the Los Angeles Angels over the weekend went pretty much as scheduled. Texas Rangers fans booed him mercilessly and pretended to be reading newspapers while he was introduced. Then, there was reportedly an incident where Hamilton’s wife and children needed to request additional security because some Rangers fans were being particularly nasty.

Overall, it was nothing anyone with a little common sense would not have seen coming. However, it is interesting to note that Texas closer Joe Nathan felt that Hamilton antagonized the fans a bit.

“I think him being more vocal than he should have been may have created more hype and more hostility,” Nathan told Casey Stern and Jim Bowden on MLB Radio Network Monday, via The Dallas Morning News. “If he had been quieter, I think this weekend might not have been hyped as much. He egged them on a little, playing with them. … It’s a shame. I hope it’s not like this every time he comes into town.”

Over the winter, Hamilton said that Dallas was not a true baseball town and that he thought the fans had become a little “spoiled” during his time with the Rangers. That certainly didn’t help matters. Hamilton was going to be booed loudly no matter what he said leading up to his first visit in Texas, but engaging the fans is never a good idea. If Hamilton was interacting with fans who were giving him a hard time as Nathan seemed to imply that he was, he certainly deserves some of the blame for the hostility he was shown.

It is no secret that Josh Hamilton has fallen from the good graces of Texas Rangers fans. He was booed as his career with the team came to a close and again this week when he visited the Ballpark in Arlington for the first time as a member of the Los Angeles Angels. All of that was to be expected, but one would hope the fans would leave Hamilton’s family out of it.

According to the Angels slugger, they did not. Hamilton said his wife Katie had to seek out security when fans were verbally harassing her and the couple’s daughters.

“She ended up calling security just because people are being ugly,” Hamilton told reporters on Friday, via the Dallas Morning News. “Not necessarily the booing and stuff, but inappropriate with kids around – and that was before the game even started. But overall, it’s not like they left and went anywhere. They stayed right there. Good lesson for the kids about people and general and not putting your faith in man, but in the man upstairs.”

Rangers officials said they provided the Hamilton family with extra security after the complaint but that no fans were ejected. They were not able to sit in a suite on Friday because there was no availability, but they were apparently given one for Saturday and Sunday. Hamilton also said his children took it well.

“They weren’t upset when they got home,” he said. “They kissed me and hugged me and said good game. They went on playing with the friends they had over. It was like coming home from any other game. … It’s cool to get ragged on about normal things. But when you get a little swearing and jawing back at Katie and saying inappropriate things, it’s a little different story.”

As the wife of this Philadelphia Eagles linebacker could tell you, fans harassing a player’s family is nothing new. However, it does cross the line — especially when young children are involved. Booing is inevitable, but there’s no need for swearing at someone’s wife and children.

Texas Rangers fans gave it to Josh Hamilton in his return to the Ballpark in Arlington. Not only did Rangers fans boo the slugger in introductions and when he came to the plate Friday, but they also pretended to read the newspaper during his at-bat:

Hamilton went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts lowering his season average to .063 through four games. They cheered when strikes were called on him, and they gave a standing ovation when he punched out. The Rangers also scored two runs late in the game to comeback and beat the Los Angeles Angels 3-2, which must have made things doubly awesome for the fans.

If you’re wondering why Rangers fans booed Hamilton, who was a five-time All-Star and one-time AL MVP during his five seasons with the team, there are several reasons.

Not only did Hamilton choose to sign with Texas’ AL West rival, but his wife also blamed the Rangers for letting her husband get away. Then Hamilton upset Texas fans by calling them “spoiled” and saying they are not true baseball fans.

Hamilton said after the game that the boos did bother him, but he is not backing down from his criticism of Rangers fans. He also jabbed them for being louder than ever just to boo him.

“I’m on a different team now, a division rival, I expect nothing less from the fans,” he told ESPN’s Pedro Gomez after the game. “I’ve never heard it louder here in any playoff game, any World Series game, so if that’s what it takes, get after if, fans.”

Gomez asked if Hamilton wanted to address his comments that the Dallas/Fort Worth area is not a baseball town.

“Stick to ‘em. If they pack the house for the next 20 or 30 years, then I might say it’s a baseball town. It’s a football town.”

The reaction of the fans really should surprise us considering they were even booing Hamilton during his slump last season.

Below is a video showing the fans booing him during introductions:

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There is very little doubt that Josh Hamilton is going to be booed when the Los Angeles Angels travel to Arlington this season to face the Texas Rangers. His career in Texas ended on fairly sour terms, and Rangers fans probably became even more irritated with him when Hamilton said Dallas is not a true baseball town.

Hamilton will get the reception out of the way early, as the Rangers visit the Angels on April 5. According to Gerry Fraley of the Dallas Morning News, his new teammates are already having some fun with it.

The Angels are setting up a clubhouse pool on whether Hamilton receives more boos or cheers when he returns to Rangers Ballpark in Arlington on April 5. Hamilton expects to be booed.

‘I got booed when I played there,’ said Hamilton, alluding to the response to his final game as a Ranger. ‘Why wouldn’t I get booed when I play there as an Angel?’

Where can I sign up? I don’t care what the odds are on Hamilton being booed more than cheered — it might as well be free money. Hamilton also backtracked on his comments about Dallas not being a baseball city and said the “fans where great” when he was there, but he’s right. Rangers fans booed him when he was in a slump. They’re certainly going to boo him when he’s suiting up for the opposition.

H/T SI Tracking Blog

An ex-con named Robert Wayne Harris was executed on Thursday night after the U.S. Supreme court refused appeals to stall his punishment. The 40-year-old Harris confessed to killing five people 12 years ago at a Dallas-area car wash that fired him. Before receiving lethal injections, Harris told his brother and three friends not to worry and then expressed his love for the Texas Rangers.

“I’m going home. I’m going home,” Harris said according to the Associated Press. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be alright. God bless, and the Texas Rangers, Texas Rangers.”

I consider myself to be a pretty big sports fan, but I can’t say the last word out of my mouth before receiving a lethal injection would be the name of my favorite team. Harris certainly won’t have his fanhood questioned — here or in the afterlife.

H/T Off the Bench

I’m not sure there was anyone at the Ballpark in Arlington on Monday night who wanted a win more than this guy. This Rangers fan was hooting and hollering to the point where both the people next to them were full of embarrassment during the 9th inning of Texas’ 6-5 win over the Rays. I was trying to figure out if this guy was so emotional that he was crying, but it looks like he was just suffering from a combination of being drunk and overheated (the beads of water on his face were actually just sweat, we think). If the Angels players had half the heart of this freak, maybe they’d be in first.

Oh, and we must mention that the Rangers had Carlos Pena perfectly defended with the shift. Elvis Andrus just to the right of second base? Chalk another point up for advanced scouting.

H/T Hot Clicks

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A fan was ejected from the Rangers-Angels game on Wednesday night for causing a disturbance in the outfield seats, and the entire ordeal irritated Angels announcer Victor Rojas who providing hilarious commentary.

The fan was sitting to the right of center field and was addressed by an usher at the urging of third-base umpire Tim Reynolds during the top of the 10th inning. The fan was waving a Texas state flag and also operating his camera with the flash on, and he was told to stop doing both.

The fan seemed to view everything as a joke at first, but the umpire didn’t find his refusal to remove the flag to be very funny. After being warned, the fan hung the flag over the railing and the umpire pointed out to center field again, this time resulting in the fan’s ejection.

“Explain to your kids on the drive home why you got kicked out,” said Rojas, embodying the feelings of annoyed spectators everywhere.

Served the fan right that he missed the Rangers’ impressive comeback in the bottom of the inning. What a dunce.