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Braves security guard takes ball from young child, but team makes it right

The Atlanta Braves security guards might take their jobs a little too seriously. Especially the one patrolling the right-field line Wednesday night at Atlanta’s new SunTrust Field.

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When Rio Ruiz hit a fair ball down the line that went toward the stands, a fan picked it up. Now let’s be clear, the fan made a mistake, but what happened afterward was worse. The fan then took the ball and handed it to a young boy who was sitting with him. Wasting no time, a security guard came to the scene and ejected the fan for interfering with a live ball. That’s fair, because those are the rules. But then the security guard took the ball away from the kid, which, come on man.

Here’s the entire moment:

A Braves security guard takes a ball from a kid at Wednesday night's game. (MLB.tv)
A Braves security guard takes a ball from a kid at Wednesday night's game. (MLB.tv)

If that whole thing bummed you out, you aren’t alone. The TV broadcasters immediately said, “have some common sense there, fella.” It seems obvious. It’s not like they have just one ball with which to play the game. That ball was probably going to join the others that the Braves would authenticate and sell for a few extra bucks in the team store. Is that worth hurting a young fan’s feelings and getting unfortunate headlines across the internet?

The Braves knew better and decided to make it right. According to ESPN, the Braves gave the young boy a baseball autographed by star first baseman Freddie Freeman and tickets to another game next month. That seems like a good way to defuse an unfortunate situation.

It should be noted, this isn’t the first time a Braves security guard got a little too aggressive for the situation. Look at what happened last year when a fan fell onto the field trying to get a foul ball.

It’s just baseball, guys. You’re not in the Secret Service.

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Mike Oz is the editor of Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!