Robert Szasz

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Robert Szasz, also known as The Happy Heckler, is a well-known heckler at Tampa Bay Devil Rays baseball games.

Szasz sits in the front row behind home plate at Tropicana Field, and picks one player from the opposing team to insult during a game or series. He waits until the player steps into the batter's box, and then he lets fly with a barrage of insults regarding the player's playing ability. His voice is so loud that it is often heard on television broadcasts of the game.

Szasz's heckling has visibly rattled players on multiple occasions. He once heckled the Mariners Bret Boone so viciously that when Boone struck out, he threw down his batting helmet and started yelling back at Szasz. In another instance, outfielder Jose Guillen offered Szasz an autographed baseball bat if he would stop heckling him in a game. Szasz says he doesn't heckle with profanity, nor does he insult a player about a personal thing such as weight or height. He says he tries to only heckle a player on their baseball ability.

Szasz has become a controversial figure. There are many fans and television viewers that complain about his loudness and abrasiveness, and there are others that enjoy his heckling. Still, he has become one of the more famous fans in baseball history, and is known throughout the American League. He has authored a book entiltled, The Happy Heckler.