Baseball, Baseball, Baseball! It is that time of year as we approach the dog days of summer, the weather is heating up, fly balls are carrying further, and we now have an idea of what teams will be competing for the playoffs – and those that will be looking to trade veterans for prospects before the July 31st trade deadline. If you love baseball this is certainly your favorite time of the year.

However, there are certain rules that should be followed that make sure everyone has the opportunity to enjoy the sport – without any unneeded harassment. Some tips are simply relevant as far too many seem to ignore very common tenants of the game.

So lets investigate on how we all can be a good baseball fan.

1. Don’t Boo Pick-off Attempts

One of the most annoying aspects of watching baseball is the few pockets of fans that will boo any pick-off attempt made by the away Pitcher. This is not all frustrating to hear, it ignores the fact that controlling the run game, keeping double plays in order, and perhaps keeping a runner from scoring on an extra base hit are actually relevant to the game. It’s proven that throwing over to first causes base runners to shorten their lead, lets not boo those throw overs please!

2. Don’t Troll Other Fans Online

Your favorite team might be better right now, you may know more about sabermetrics than others, but by no means does that mean you should go out of your way to mock other fans.

This happens far too much during sports in general, lets simply enjoy the game. The only person that looks bad by you spouting off nonsense of social media is yourself, definitely keep that in mind. If you happen to be at a park, please do not talk trash to other fans – especially not children. Class is also very important.

3. Have Fun

Why else would you watch a sport unless you wanted to enjoy yourself? Baseball should not be stressful, should not worsen your mood, nor should it bring out the worst part of your personality. What’s more exciting than a perfectly executed 6-4-3 double play or a Center Fielder robbing a batter of a Home Run? There’s so much to enjoy by watching baseball, focus on those aspects even if your favorite team is performing under expectations.

4. Don’t Threaten Players

While Twitter provides many great benefits, allowing users to send death threats, ill wishes, and simply nasty tweets towards players after an on-field mistake are not the better aspects of the platform. It’s baseball errors will happen, slumps will happen, games will be lost – those are not excuses for you to hide behind anonymity online and send ridiculous messages.

5. Respect Players That Respect The Game

With the booming contracts in Major League Baseball we should always be thankful of the players that run out ground balls, always hustle, and leave their best effort out on the field.

Let’s face it, not every player decides to hustle nor plays the game in the correct manner. It’s amazing to see players that play the game with excitement,  love, and passion. Always tip your hat to those individuals.

6. Vote For Those That Deserve All-Star Births

I know the inclination is to vote for players on your favorite team, but take into consideration the rules surrounding the game itself. The winning league receives home field advantage in the World Series (ridiculous rule) and every team must be represented (ridiculous, even more so that the game “counts”) therefore to give the game some shred of integrity the exhibition game should be filled with players that are deserving – not the most noticeable names.