Many fans in the stadium try to yell insults at crucial moments to distract the other team. Seely says this is pointless. "However witty we think they are, our verbal attempts to distract opposing players usually fail," he wrote. "Short of running shirtless onto the field with your teenage son and physically attacking the first-base coach (as two White Sox rooters did in 2002), few fans ever get to create an actual game-changing distraction. Yelling just doesn't cut it. To the pro athlete, cheering – especially organized cheering – is factory noise."
