(a typically enterprising Braves fan fills a bucket from the restroom tap rather than pay exorbitant Turner Field prices for bottled water)

From the Atlanta Journal Constitution’s Richard Eldredge.

Even as the Atlanta Braves close in on their 14th consecutive division title, their fans have already cinched up the top spot in another competition ” worst public restroom hygiene in the nation.

The results of an annual survey released by the American Society of Microbiology on Wednesday reported that the hygiene at Atlanta’s Turner Field was the worst of any venue in the 6,300 public restrooms monitored last month.

According to ASM, 37 percent of men monitored at Turner Field left the bathroom without washing while 16 percent of the women did. (The survey failed to mention that female Braves fans frequently endure kidney-crushing lines as well while men have easier access.)

“I personally think the 37 percent is pretty low,” said East Point Braves fan Jeffrey McIntyre when he learned of the survey. “I can’t tell you how many men I’ve watched at the stadium just walk out of the restroom without washing and then go straight to a concession stand. It’s really disgusting.”

While that is distasteful, McIntyre and his fellow tomahawk choppers can take some consolation in the knowing that certain members of the Braves pitching staff will not be handling food items or sharing toilets with the general public at Turner Field.