We always talk about traditions in sports.  The Pinstripes, the "Play Like A Champion" sign at Notre Dame and the 7th inning stretch are all examples of cool traditions.

Let's face it, traditions are what brings fans together, and in some cases, show your loyalty to a team.

That said, there's one tradition in sports that drives me nuts!

Throwing the ball back on the field after the opposing team hits a homerun is the worst fan tradition in sports.

If I catch a ball at a game, I'm keeping it.

You can go to over 100 games in your life and never catch a foul ball or homerun.  In fact, most people out there will never even get near a ball hit in the stands.  And the odds of you actually catching it aren’t very good.

If a homerun is hit and I happen to get near it, it’s mine.  End of story!  Who cares what other people think? 

The question you have to ask yourself is this - does it pass the 5-year rule?  In other words: in 5 years, what would be cooler, saying you caught a ball and had to throw it back because of a lame tradition or having the homerun ball of an opposing player that happens to be an All-Star or even a Hall of Famer?

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Anyone can say they had to throw a ball back into the field but few actually have the ball.

Who on earth started this tradition? 

What was this silly tradition supposed to do?  Offend the player because you didn’t want to keep the ball he hit?  Newsflash:  That player doesn’t care what you do with the ball that you caught.  It’s a run whether you keep it or throw it back.

Throwing a ball back onto the field is a stupid tradition that’s only done because of peer pressure.  I guarantee you there are people that wanted to keep the ball but they couldn’t because they’d get booed.

Trust me – there are a lot of you out there that are probably mad at yourselves because you didn’t keep that ball.  Congrats – you got hornswaggled.

Some other lame fan traditions that get me fired up. 

The Wave: 1989 called. They want their lame chant back.  This is so lame that I refused to do it when I’m at a game today.

No shirt guy: This always happens when it’s 20 degrees or lower.  Nothing like going to a game and getting pneumonia.  Smart. Real Smart. 

Not being able to talk about a no-hitter: Like you're going to make a difference in the guy's pitches by talking about it.  The pitcher with the no-hitter doesn't know if you're talking about it or not.  He doesn't even know who you are.

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