It seems dependent on whether you are a fan “of the game”, or more a fan “of the team”.
If I am a fan of my team, above all else, whe would I want to keep a home run ball from my enemy?
IN a sense, it would be like wanting to get an autograph from a movie star you dislike, just because they are a movie star.
Throwing the ball back says “we love our team, and will have nothing to do with the success of the other team against us.
If you are at the game for the game, and don’t care about the teams, then you’d just love to have the ball.
BTW, I grew up in Connecticut, but we were fans of the Orioles, where we had lived previously. So we would go to Yankee games but sit on the visitor dugout side. It was very easy to get autographs, most yankee fans even then wouldn’t pretend they cared about the other team. And there were really good seats available on that side for the same reason.
There are a lot of traditions in baseball, like the 7th inning stretch? Is it stupid? Why would you stand up in the middle of that particular inning, just to sing some ridiculous song (usually ‘take me out to the ballgame’, at least in my day)
We had a guy who dressed funny and would lead us in chants in section 34. He became so famous that if you search “Baltimore Orioles Section 34 cheerleader”, you will be directed to his wikipedia entry. Stupid tradition, or part of the memorably experience — I can say that the occasional visiting fan who ended up in that section probably felt it was a pretty stupid thing, preventing his enjoyment of the game, while we all went wild for Wild Bill Hagy. But that tradition went down with the man.
And of course we have the shouted “O” during the national anthem, which seems disrespectful, but is not confined to the ball park. I was just in Florida for the World Quidditch Cup finals, and since Maryland had a team there, when we sang the national anthem, a section of fans shouted “O” at the appropriate time. I’ve also heard it at theme parks (which are one of the few places where they still have you stand quietly for the anthem before opening).
C'mon, imagine catching a ball hit by Ted Williams, or Hank Aaron, or Johnny Bench.
Even if you hate the other team, what a prize that would be.
Interesting, but honestly, I still think it’s tasteless.
Just my own view on it. In the big scheme of things, this matters not :)