OAKLAND, Calif. -- Texas reliever Frank Francisco threw a chair into the right-field box seats Monday night, hitting two spectators in the head, as Oakland Athletics fans taunted the visitors after a two-out, top-of-the-ninth home run tied the game.
One of the fans, an unidentified woman, left with facial lacerations and a broken nose. According to vice president of stadium operations David Rinetti, the woman was considering pressing charges.
The commissioner's office said Tuesday morning it was investigating. -------------------------
End his season plus some change next. This ain't ECW.
She should sue the hell out of that guy. I've got little problem with brawls between the players, but when the fans start getting hurt, there's a serious issue there.
"Are you- are you sad?"
-No.
"But your- your songs are sad."
-My songs are of time and distance. The sadness is in you. Watch my arms. There is only the dance. These things you treasure are shells.
Originally posted by ESPN.com OAKLAND, Calif. -- Texas Rangers reliever Frank Francisco was arrested Tuesday morning after he threw a chair into the right-field box seats, hitting two spectators in the head and leaving one with a broken nose, during Monday night's loss to the Athletics.
Francisco was arrested on a charge of aggravated battery, a felony. The fan whose nose was broken, an unidentified woman, also suffered cuts to her face.
Francisco was cooperative after he was taken into custody, Oakland Police Department deputy chief Peter Dunbar said. He posted bond early Tuesday morning and was released. Rangers officials did not return calls from The Associated Press on Tuesday morning. The commissioner's office said that it is investigating the incident.
"We're looking into the matter," MLB spokesman Patrick Courtney said Tuesday. "We take matters like this seriously. ... We're just at the beginning stages of looking into it all."
The woman who was injured was considering pressing charges, according to David Rinetti, Oakland's vice president of stadium operations.
With two outs in the ninth, the Rangers' Alfonso Soriano tied the game at 5 with his second homer of the night. Moments later, with the Rangers' Hank Blalock at the plate, the Texas bench and bullpen cleared.
Texas relief pitcher Doug Brocail was seen screaming at a male fan after the two appeared to exchange insults, and the pitcher had to be restrained by his teammates and bullpen coach Mark Connor. Others also had to be held back.
"Tonight, it went over the line," Rangers manager Buck Showalter said. "It was a real break from the normal trash you hear from fans. We've had problems about every time we've come here."
Glad to see somebody doing something about it.
Have there been problems with A's fans before this incident, as the article insinuates?
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Originally posted by GrimisHave there been problems with A's fans before this incident, as the article insinuates?
I've been out to Oakland a couple of times and the fans might be passionate, but never crazy. Maybe the article has them mistaken for Oakland Raiders fans.
Kane: Come on! We've had midgets and fire and midgets and Trish as the slutty bridesmaid and midgets. What's not to like? Lita: I guess it still beats anything on "The Bachelor"
The fans showered the field with crap when Boston was out there last week.
The ump made a bad call, ruling that Manny Ramirez caught a fly ball, which bounced, early in the game. Later in the game (7th or 8th, I think) Mark Kotsay made a similar non-catch, but this time the ump got the call right and ruled it a hit.
The game was delayed for a short bit as cups, bottles, trash etc rained down on left field.
Well, I know that in some minor league hockey leagues, throwing ANYTHING into a crowd or injurring any fan by doing something intentional that common sense would dictate you NOT do, is grounds for a lifetime ban.
The fans showered the field with crap when Boston was out there last week.
The ump made a bad call, ruling that Manny Ramirez caught a fly ball, which bounced, early in the game. Later in the game (7th or 8th, I think) Mark Kotsay made a similar non-catch, but this time the ump got the call right and ruled it a hit.
The game was delayed for a short bit as cups, bottles, trash etc rained down on left field.
Actually, both calls happened way late in the game. Full article here.
Ramirez made his iffy catch in the 8th. Kotsay his in the 9th....
What drove the A's nuts about the Ramirez catch is that the game was only 4-3 at that point. Kotsay was starting a rally, which he was denied on a trapped ball called a catch. The EXACT same play happened the next inning with Kotsay trapping a ball, and it was called a trap - which started a Red Sox rally that blew the game right out.
That has nothing to do with the fans, but some perspective as to why the folks might have been a tad pissed during that game.
You people are being a little harsh, this guy is merely keeping the player/fan interaction tradition alive in baseball. A tradition that dates back to Ty Cobb, and was last revisited by Albert Belle and Vince Coleman in the early 90's. Now Frank Fransico will live in baseball infamy, forever.
Damn, I thought it was bad when I got a cellphone thrown at me from the Network Associates Coliseum stands last year while shooting the Packers/Raiders game on the sidelines.
But this is ridiculous. And CRZ even told me last year that A's fans don't act like Raiders fans. I guess the Red Sox would say differently.
All that said, there is NOTHING that can justify a player going after a fan in the stands short of the fan striking first with physical contact...and even less justification for throwing a damn chair into the stands.
Worst. Chairshot. EVER.
(EDIT: Picture-fied!)
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You want to talk about having every right to make a sue someone that woman who got busted open due to his chair falls under that and then some... He should be suspended for the rest of the season and some of next.
Frank Francisco really took the next step to surpass 2003 stupidity concerning the Sausage Race and the Pirate player Randall Simon taking a bat to one of the running sausages... What will be baseball's 2005 idiot of the year, can't wait!
smark/net attack wienerville advisory is raised to ORANGE alert - High (Benoit lost the title to some punk kid named Orton, lets look at the positive at least it's a heel not named HHH who has the title, which allows two fresh faces battling for the World title.. whaat? excuse me? what happened on Raw! well scratch that... Over to Smackdown we wave at Justin Bradshaws title reign, I think I'm getting sea sick)- 8/22
Randall Simon gets alot of justifiable flack for the Sausage Incident, but he wasn't exactly "attacking" or having malicious intent. He was being a goofball and tapped the sausage. Despite what some reports said, Simon did not plant his feet and take a swing at the kid. Francisco mailicously tossed the chair. So yeah, in that regard, he's passed Simon.
Remember the fan who smacked the Dodgers' Chad Kreuter in the head and stole his cap? Didn't Krueter go after him?
Ah, the great tradition of sports & fans interacting.
Who could forget Calgary's contributions? -Sasha Lakovic, sometimes NHLer, going after an Oilers fan who dumped a coke on then-Flames assistant coach Guy Lapointe. -The Streaker who knocked himself out on the ice. -Oilers Coach Craig McTavish ripping out Harvey the Hound's tougue
Francisco should be suspended indefinately, pending the legal troubles with the victim.
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There are a few inconsistencies to this story. The woman said she was trying to back up. How do you not get hit in the back of the head? Second, according to Dan Patrick the exchange that led to it, started with the woman's huisband asking the Rangers pen who was going to blow the game tonight. The pen rebutted which of the relievers were going to get blown by the guy's wife that night? A racial slur was used by Bueno. Then it went from there. I know that throwing a chair was wrong, but if I was called the n=word, I am beating some one down.