While they lay on the ground, a fan reached over and grabbed Rice's hat. Rice was on his feet and Owen had left the field with a bruised chest when Rice saw the fan with his hat.

According to the Red Sox, Rice said to the fan: ''Give me my hat and I'll give you another one. That's my lucky gamer.''

The fan, the Red Sox said, replied with an obscenity, stuffed the hat into his pants and started up the aisle. Rice vaulted over the low railing and ran up the aisle after him. Most of the rest of the team followed.

Among the several players who remained on the field was Marty Barrett. ''Somebody had to guard the gloves,'' he said.

Rice at first declined to discuss the incident but later answered questions, primarily with ''yep'' and ''nope.'' He said he went after the fan both because he had the hat and because of what he said. He said he would not do it again, but added that none of the other fans gave him any trouble.

''The fans were the ones who showed me who had the hat,'' he said.

McNamara said that while the Red Sox were in the stands, someone snatched Dennis (Oil Can) Boyd's hat. ''Baylor was behind me,'' the manager said of Don Baylor, his designated hitter. ''All I know is the guy wound up in the seats and I got the hat back. You hate to see something like that. Someone can get seriously hurt. A woman or a child can get stepped on. It's a shame something like that happened.''

Security guards quickly rushed to the area and got the situation under control. The Red Sox, though, remained in the stands for several minutes.