People say the darnedest things

What some fans will say at sports events, and the wonderful world of Major League Baseball:
U At a girls high school softball game earlier this season, a catcher stood up, took the first pitch of the contest that was shoulder high and the plate umpire called it a ball. A fan yelled, "Ump you haven't got one right today."
UAt another girls softball game, a woman sitting in the stands of a team that was losing 6-1 in the sixth inning stared out at a sophomore pitcher and tried to heckle her by shouting, "You're tired, we're going to hit you and get even." The sophomore pitcher got the side out in order on her way to a win and silenced the woman.
UAt still another softball game a fan shouted out to a batter, "Watch her [the pitcher] -- she's pitching from her hip." Can you imagine anybody's hip pitching a softball or baseball?
UWhen a batter takes a pitch that's called a ball by the plate umpire, fans will holler good eye, and I thought batters used both eyes to watch thrown pitches.
Swing and a miss
UAt a recent high school baseball game a fan called to a batter, "Keep your head on it [pitch], just meet it, it's nothing you can't hit." The batter struck out swinging at three pitches.
UAttending a boxing show at a Moose Club in Warren 40 years ago, a fighter was punching his heavyweight opponent, hurt and bleeding, at will and 300 fans stood up and shouted "Hit him again, make him bleed, kill him," because the fans wanted to see a knockout.
UMany years ago at a charity horse show at the Canfield Fairgrounds, the owner of a horse pointed to a rider, attired in proper uniform, riding a beautiful horse as they approached center ring about to be judged for a precision routine. The owner said, "See that horse, [it had won numerous awards], I paid $250,000 for it and it's going to win." The judge thought otherwise and didn't even place rider-horse in the top three.
UA fan once told me every Friday, Saturday and Sunday during football season, stadiums are full of people who are verbal critics, who would make a poor showing if they themselves were to descend on the field.
UAlex Rodriguez of the Texas Rangers, the highest paid player in Major League Baseball ($22 million dollars), makes more money then all the players on the Tampa Bay Devil Rays roster ($19.6 million).
UIncidentally, Texas is in last place in the American League West Division and Tampa Bay is last in the East Division.
Above the cost of living
UIn 1989, the average Major League Baseball salary was $512,804. This season players are being paid an average $2,555,476, a 498-percent increase over the past 14 years.
UPayrolls for the 30 teams in the American and National League exceed a whopping $2,130,000,000.
UActually, there are 385 players earning a million dollars or more of the 750 men playing Major League Baseball this season.
USome of those millionaires are on the disabled list that includes Baltimore's Albert Belle (12.4 million), who's career is over because of health problems but has a guaranteed contract that pays whether he plays or not.
UHalf of the Cleveland Indians' opening day roster had salaries in the $300,000 category, with Ellis Burks ($7.1 million) one of 10 on the team making a salary of seven figures.
UIt may be, that aside from being able to recognize the list of baseball's elite millionaires, most fans can't name many of those seven-figured players on the 30 major league rosters.
UMoney alone isn't necessarily the way to World Series championships, but certainly has contributed to many titles (26) won by the enviable New York Yankees.
XMark Miller is a sportswriter for The Vindicator.