Honestly I think the major components of home field advantage are having the last at-bat, not having to travel, and being able to custom-build a team to your park. Of course having the crowd root you on provides a psychological benefit that I'm sure is comforting to players, there's more in play than just that. Personally, I stay the hell away from MP during Cubs games. While it seems that 75% of Cubs fans are simply rooting for their squad as we would at Wrigley, those 25% make it unbearable... and the loudmouth drunken Brewers fans who blurt obscenities back at them aren't helping the cause. Back to the original topic, making fun of kids in general at games should be off-limits. The fact that the kid had a autistic disorder of some sort only makes the situation that much more embarrassing. As someone with a neuropsychiatric condition, I really feel for that family.