Fan Who Heckled Ketel Marte Deserves to Get 20 Years

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People, in general, need to take bullying more seriously. In just one week, MLB Superstar Ketel Marte of the Arizona Diamondbacks experienced heckling by a fan who made fun of him by bringing up his dead mother. There was also the suicide of social media influencer Mikayla Raines, who because of online bullying. Enough is enough. The fan who heckled Marte deserves a ban of at least 20 years.

People who think the indefinite ban is too harsh need to wake up and do so quickly. How much proof does one need that we are struggling to take all forms of bullying seriously? Some may say people, in general, need to “grow a thick skin”. However, heckling anyone, let alone a popular MLB Superstar, referencing his dead mother is worse than uncalled for, it’s straight up evil. There is no need to use nice words with this.

This is bigger than just Marte and the Raines. What about kids in school going through this because other kids are being jerks? Those same kids might grow into adults who repeat the same mistake that this fan made. Talk about schools making strides with counseling all you want to. Talk about the non-stop conferences and assemblies designed to teach kids about the dangers and immorality of bullying all you want to. Say what you want about religion helping to slow down the problem as much as you’d like. It shouldn’t be this way.

The solution is much simpler than that. It’s up to parents to do what they need to do from the beginning. The truth is, good values don’t start at a religious institution or a school. Good values start at home. This isn’t debatable. This isn’t something to excuse or pass off to someone else. When kids are taught about the dangers and immorality of bullying at home, bad things happen later down the road. Why wait for a school or religious teacher to do what you should do? There’s no reason to pass up on responsibility.

This is also personal to me. As a kid, I was constantly called a retard. Although I didn’t always present myself as the intellect I am today, there was no reason to be called that. I carried on as best I could, but not everyone has the strength to do that. When does the emotional and mental toll last decades? Not many kids stop to think about the long-term impact of their behavior, and others simply don’t care. It’s time to start caring about the long-term impacts of such hostile behavior.

According to the Pew Research Center, nearly half of all teens experience cyberbullying. This seems to be the most common form of bullying, even among adults. In-person and cyberbullying both have dangerous implications, and it’s important to educate the public about the dangers of bullying. It’s not about being “soft” or the need to “toughen up”. It’s not acceptable for people to behave in such a hostile manner.

Dr. Rick Peterson, Associate Professor and Extension Parenting Specialist, wrote a paper about adults bullying each other back in 2016. He asked a question about how it made adults feel. He outlined strategies for adults to effectively deal with bullying and prevent bullying. His paper can be found at