Tuning out the noise.(Closer)

Think players don't hear you? They do. They hear cheers and boos.

Players get used to hearing both, but getting booed takes more getting used to. Every player has to deal with it. Fans in some cities are proud of making their place among the toughest to play in, so when you're in those places, you get used to being booed.

Still, the first few times the boos can get to you. If you ask, most players can tell you where they were and what happened when they first got booed off the field. It's like a rite of passage. You've seen the tapes. A pitcher comes off the field, he's getting hammered by boos, and he flicks off the crowd. That is the point when you have cracked from the boos. Ask Jack McDowell, for example.

New York is one of the tough towns, as Derek Jeter--or whoever is experiencing a tough time--can tell you. Let me let you in on a little secret: Jeter can hear you, but he's not affected by you. He's a Hall of Famer. He feels the boos, but not for too long because when he gets right he knows the fans will cheer him. Jeter himself says it best: "There are a lot of frustrated Yankees fans out there. That just means they care."

If you're not a Hall of Famer, the booing can be scarring. A lot of guys I've played with have had a problem pitching at home. I played against a Yankees ...