At Least We Know This Scene Won’t Be Repeated At Ravens Camp

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↵The MLB All-Star Fanfest in Anaheim this past weekend, as with any such event, had booths with former players signing autographs. For reasons that are unclear but strictly enforced, some of the players are only able to sign certain items. In the case of former Mets and Expos catcher Gary Carter, he could only sign baseball cards. This comes to the great dismay of a man with two sons with have 8 x 10 glossies of Carter. There’s little chance the kids have ever even heard of Gary Carter. Most likely, they’ve been used as a cover to get items he can flip for quick cash. Of course, that’s why the guy has a camera and a plan to publicly shame Carter if he offers any resistance. Unfortunately, the plan works and the guy gets his way, though not without making a big scene first.↵↵Not that its creation was a directly connected result of this incident, but the new policy announced by the Baltimore Ravens for autographs at its training camp this year seems like welcome news after seeing this video. According to the new policy, Ravens players will sign for children only following morning practice, and will not sign at all after afternoon practice.↵

↵↵⇥“We have considered changing the way we do autograph signings for a few years,” team president Dick Cass said in a statement. “Our crowds for the morning practices have become so large that we’ve had safety situations with people pushing each other to try and get closer to the players. Often times, children would be put in difficult positions with the rush for autographs, especially from our most popular players.”↵↵↵It represents the first major change in the autograph policy in the team’s 14-year history. Sure, it wouldn’t stop a father from cramming a glossy into a kid’s hands and sending them in for an autograph that eventually gets sold, but at least the kid wouldn’t have to stand there and watch the dad make a fool of himself. Oh, and they won’t violently get pushed against a fence. Unless you count by people their own size.↵

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