Were Red Sox Fans Right Or Wrong For Booing Injured Beckett?
BOSTON (CBS) -- There are many reasons fans end up booing their own players, but suffering an injury generally isn't one of them. Alas, such is the state of the 2012 Boston Red Sox, Josh Beckett and the frustrated fans at Fenway Park.
The one-time ace left Tuesday night's game in the third inning with back spasms after he walked in the first run of the game. Beckett, who was believed to have been on the trading block earlier in the day before the non-waiver trade deadline, is 5-9 this year and owns a 4.54 ERA, so he's been a regular target for fans looking to blame someone for the mediocre season.
So perhaps it was out of habit that thousands of Sox fans unleashed the loud, bellowing boos from the stands. After all, they had done the same on May 10, when Beckett allowed seven runs in 2 1/3 innings after his infamous injured golf outing. In going on that golf trip while the team made him skip a start, Beckett may have lost any benefit of the doubt he may have normally gotten from fans with regard to doing what's necessary to keep his body in shape to pitch.
Or maybe they were just mad that they shelled out 70 bucks for a ticket, only to be greeted with a steady rain from the heavens above (which is not totally Beckett's fault, though some might argue otherwise). They could have been disappointed the Sox failed to make any significant moves, and perhaps many wished Beckett had been traded and felt booing was the best way to let him know.
Whenever a crowd does anything, it's impossible to understand each and every individual's thought process that went into the action. Regardless, in this case, with an injured pitcher leaving the game, was it wrong to boo?
