Remember when you could go and watch a football, baseball or hockey game and could cheer for the opposing teams and not have to worry about too much other than a little good natured banter from the hometown fans and if it was really bad, perhaps a peanut or hardened pretzel to the back of the dome?  Upon which you’d turn around and shoot some guy a gnarly look and he’d back away and not have too much to say, and then you could go back to watching the game in peace.  I remember those times too, and unfortunately, I remember the times where all I’ve wanted to do is smack the tartar off the opposing team’s fans’ teeth. 

I’ve been on both sides of this conundrum; the catch here though, is that I’ve never ever acted on the urge to thrash someone because of my loyalties….even when the urge was there.  Which has happened many a time and the urge, while powerful, I’ve been able to control.  The times that I recall the most are in 2007, when the Detroit Red Wings were smacking around my Colorado Avalanche like they were amateurs and Wings fans were running their mouths, in 2003 when Michigan beat my beloved Buckeyes by a score of 35-21, led by fumble prone Chris Perry and Douche Bag Henne – it didn’t help that a good friend of mine (who just happens to be a Michigan fan) was with me…anyway, the fact is the “sinister urge” has been there.

It’s also apparently been there for a couple of guys who happen to be die hard Yankee fans, the difference between them and myself (aside from the fact they like the Yanks) is that they acted upon that urge. (Disclaimer time:  I can admit – I hate the Yankees, like to the point where I’d rather take a swift kick to the junk rather than see them win.  The only other team I loathe more is the University of Michicrap Wolverines)…I digress though.  In the humid summer of 2007, Beantown Red Sox fan Charlie Hillios decided to take in a Yankees vs. Red Sox game in the house that Ruth built in the Bronx.  While at the game, one of the Sox went yard and delivered a homerun and Hillios started cheering, as any fan of the Sox would have (myself included, if for no other reason than spite).  Well, shortly after the homer and with the Sox having the game firmly in hand, Hillios went to the concession stand to buy a beer or possibly two, depending on how much he was about to celebrate.  Unbeknown to him, he was followed to the concession stand by two goon Yankee fans, Shawn Sellick and Daniel Benjamin, and was beaten worse than the speed bag at the Morris Park Boxing Club. 

In the aftermath, Hillios was taken to the hospital and was diagnosed with more than a beaten ego, having a bruised lung, exploded testicle, fractured jaw and ended up needing eye surgery to repair his lacerated iris and partially detached retina.  That sounds like it would be pretty painful and obviously, those shots were landed with some spiteful intent.  Seriously, kick a guy in the head, the gut, the back, anywhere……except there. Anyway, Sellick and Benjamin, the goony Yankee fans, were found guilty of misdemeanor assault and sentenced accordingly.  Now Hillios, who still has issues with his vision has filed suit against the New York Yankees and is seeking damages in the millions.  The Yankees, being the high class organization they are, have went on record as saying that Hillios “assumed the risk of foreseeable injury based on his own conduct” and went on further saying that they (The Yankees) are “not liable for the alleged intention of the conduct of Sellick or Benjamin“.  So essentially, and correct me if I’m wrong, they’re saying that Hillious should have kept his mouth shut and that he got what was coming to him.  What is this European Soccer…err….Futbol?

I can’t say that I agree with that; however, to a certain degree I can understand their rationale.  Common sense would have told you or I that going into that yard, beamed up in Red Sox gear, cheering for a Sox homer in a Yankees loss wasn’t a good idea.  I equate that to standing in the middle of the Sahara, with a pack of lions about 200 feet away while wearing a suit made of steak……stupid. Apparently, Hillios’ judgement and/or fight or flight meter wasn’t working that day, and he paid for it.  To me, there are just some rivalries in sports that you don’t test the waters with the home town fans, Broncos vs. Raiders in Oakland, Red Sox home or away vs. Yankees home or away, Texas anywhere vs. Oklahoma anywhere and Ohio State anywhere vs. Michicrap anywhere…..the list goes on.  With those rivalries you have to know that at some point, if you’re wearing the other teams gear, you’re probably going to get something from the hometown fans that’s going to ruin your day and if you’re really unlucky, your ability to reproduce.

Personally, I applaud the guy for having huevos the size of bowling balls and even thinking about going in to Yankee stadium Sox-ed out, but on the other hand, I’m baffled.  That, like NASCAR driving, takes one thing…..idiocy.  The question that I can’t help but ask here is; what the hell was that guy (Hillios) thinking?  I think to a certain extend, he holds some of the blame himself and in all fairness, I don’t see the Yankees standpoint of blaming him completely for what happened, yet I understand them trying to defend and protect themselves.  Hillios had to have known, somewhere in his own mind, that there was a high probability of something happening to him, yet he did it anyway.  Now, I’m not in any way condoning the actions of those two loser fans in Yankee Stadium that day.  Clearly to me, they took this to a level that it shouldn’t have been even close to and frankly, those two guys, Sellick and Benjamin, are a couple of bums and they deserve whatever they get from this. However, I think to blame them solely is unfair too, if for no other reason, the simple fact that Yankees and Red Sox and sports fans in general can be and typically are passionate fans.  And we all know that any time passion is involved, judgment tends to be a little skewed – don’t you remember the Bobbit trial? Also, see the “crimes of passion law” adopted by all 50 states. 

All that being said raises another question: Who’s to blame for all of this?  Do we blame Hillios and his use of poor judgement that day?  Do we point the finger at Sellick and Benjamin for their idiotic actions?  Do we blame the Yankess for allowing such goons into their ballpark?  Really, I think the blame deserves to be equally distributed in this case; however, I think the other side of it is the emphasis that we as fans put on the outcome of these games can lead to this type of thing happening.  I said earlier, and I’ll be the first to admit, when Ohio State loses, I feel a range of emotions that has to be somewhat comparable to what a woman feels during her…well…time of the month.  I feel irritated, angry, sad, and sometimes flat out mad.

The importance that’s put on these games sometimes is absolutely crazy.  Tune in to ESPN in about 2 weeks when the NFL playoff picture is about to unfold, and you’ll hear term like “Life or Death” and “Absolute Must Win”, which can create a stirring of emotions from everyone involved,  from the fans to the hot dog guy and the players to the coaches.  So, is there any chance that with the building of some of sports best rivalries, that people rather than being taught to love, support and admire their team, have been taught and conditioned to hate their rival so badly that they see the opposing fans as less than zero?  I think it’s very possible, because as I recall growing up, there were times when I was told that everyone else, aside from Ohio State, was the enemy.  Since those days, I’ve come to recognize that that’s not entirely true…..Michigan Fans excluded of course….I’m just kidding, but seriously though. 

Bottom line here, I feel bad for Hillios, because after all, he was just cheering his team and their winning.  He wasn’t doing anything wrong and he certainly didn’t deserve to be beaten the way he was. As for Sellick and Benjamin, they’re idiots, and if you two read this, understand that your actions have spoken for you.  And the Yankees?  I’d say that George needs to get in touch with reality.  Look, drop the high priced lawyers and help this guy get his life back together.  It would be pretty easy to contact him and work on a settlement outside of the public forum in which you’ve been operating.  Help the guy with his medical bills and get this thing taken care of.  Because George, you know if you took your Bentley to a shop and when you got it back things were missing and damaged, even though they have those dumb signs that say something along the lines of “not responsible for lost or stolen items” or while at the hospital you caught pneumonia because of unsanitary conditions you’d want their asses in a sling too.  So, put yourself in his shoes and do what’s right, even though that comes hard for you and your franchise (the A-Rod signing is proof of that).

Rodney King said it best by uttering those so famous words that have turned into punch-lines for countless jokes by saying, “Can’t we all just get along?”  Reality here is that we’re all people and we’re all proud of where we’re from and whoever our franchises are.  And, we’re always going to hold a little resentment toward our rival, for the simple fact that rivalries are drama, and drama is passion and that passion is what we bring to the ballpark, field, or rink when we watch and support our teams.  But beating someone up because of the colors they wear and whom they support is childish, and there should be no place for those kind of actions anywhere in sports, and yes….that includes Yankee fans.  After hearing about this story, it really made me question what kind of fan I was to the teams I support.  Was I the A-hole that hated their team, or was I the guy that loved MY team?  Prior to this, I’d say I was the former, and I was so proud of that, wearing it like some badge of honor and had no respect for the other squad.  Now however, I’m going to try and work on being the latter, as I hope all of you will too!

Here’s Hillios himself:

The Beaten One