Overzealous fan storms pitcher's mound after batter is hit by pitch

When a batter is hit by a pitch, there's invariably a tense moment or two that follows. Was the act intentional? Either way, will the batter retaliate? If so, will he storm the mound immediately? Or will he pretend to trot down the first base line as a show of peace before veering toward a pitcher who's let his guard down slightly? As spectators we've been conditioned to expect the unexpected in situations like these, especially after watching Pedro Martinez toil with a then 72-year-old Don Zimmer in 2003.

But an even stranger act of retaliation began to unfold at Whataburger Field during the Corpus Cristi Hooks-Midland Rockhounds game on Sunday. After Corpus Cristi 1B Telvin Nash was beaned by a Blake Hassebrock pitch, a Hooks fan stormed the mound from the stands in protest. That's right, not Nash or one of his teammates — a fan — who seemed ready to take on the entire bullpen, came to Hassebrock's defense.
Fortunately, the fracas ended without too much of a clash and the umpires quickly showed the fan the door. As he was being escorted out down the third base line, cheers could be heard from those in attendance, seemingly to honor the superfan for an epic, though slightly misguided, show of loyalty.