THE STRIKE ZONE
Sometimes Sports, Sometimes Sportsmanship
I know it's a little late to the party based on how the blog works; hopefully we will address more time sensitive matters in our podcast from here on out! But with the baseball season here, perhaps this is a nice time to examine this story again.
Last year, one of the big deals that hit the newspapers was "Apple-gate," the scandal about how the Boston Red Sox used an Apple Watch to steal signs from the New York Yankees and gained an unfair advantage that is strictly forbidden by the rules of baseball. Rather than rehash the details, take the time to familiarize yourself with the story if you haven't already. As an aside, let's highlight just a few additional points:
So what can we take from this? First of all, let the record state that it is illegal in baseball to use technology to steal signs or gain any sort of advantage. The most that is allowed in baseball are stopwatches, which are used by coaches to gauge times for pitchers to deliver a pitch, catchers to throw to second base, etc. Major League Baseball has actually now started allowing iPads in dugouts (and similar devices) so long as they are issued solely by MLB; this allows players to watch video on pitchers (which they do anyway in preparation) while guaranteeing that the devices are locked and governed by MLB with no threat of additional cheating. The issue with technology is that it cannot be used to gain an advantage during the moment. If teams or players want to head back to the clubhouse in between innings to examine their most recent at-bat and try to pick up a pattern on pitch sequence, for example, that's completely fine because it does not "tip the pitches" to the hitter so they know what is coming. They're using past experiences to make an estimation on what they think will happen in the future, which is a philosophical experience that can be traced back to how humans make certain understandings about things such as the law of gravity: "I cannot guarantee that the law of gravity will continue to exist, but judging based on my experiences in life, I can place a pretty good bet that it will continue to exist." So what did the Yankees do to deserve this fine? Well, it was never fully released as to what their sin was, but if I had to guess, it was probably a violation of the mandate that was passed down regarding how teams are not allowed to use their replay technology (especially the phone system of calling back to the replay room) to ask about an umpire's strike zone and then argue with the umpire about it. That's the same as disagreeing with a call on the field, going back to the clubhouse to see a replay, then coming back to argue with the umpire and cite the fact that you saw the replay and the umpire was wrong: that's grounds for immediate ejection. As to the Diamondbacks, at the time of this writing (which is shortly following the NLWC game), there has been nothing released about the investigation. But it seems pretty clear: if you're lucky enough to own an Apple Watch or a similar device, leave it in the clubhouse! As an epilogue, the monies collected in the fines were all donated to hurricane relief funds. So there is a quantum of solace to the story!
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The San Diego Padres did not have a good 2017 season. But even in the midst of a poor season, some players can keep things in perspective.
Take Erick Aybar, for example. During a game in September 2017 against the Dodgers at home, the Padres infielder was running towards the third base stands attempting to catch a fly ball. The ball landed well out of reach, but Aybar's momentum took him straight to the edge of the stands, where he encountered a young Padres fan. So what did he do? He slowed up and hugged the kid. And the kid hugged back! Aybar was asked about it after the game, and he discussed how kids, especially kids that close to you during a game, are blessings. It's amazing how children can put things in perspective sometimes, right? Kudos to you, Erick Aybar! When discussing youth sports, specifically the Little League World Series, I've gone on record with my hesitations to endorse such events at their high levels. No matter how we slice it, the particular discussions to be had in this area of youth sports are plenty.
So for a moment, let's put some of it aside and just recognize a good moment... During the 2017 Little League World Series, Venezuela walked off on the Dominican Republic, causing the losing pitcher to break down in tears. So what did Venezuela do when they realized what was happening? They rushed to the crying pitcher (from the opposing team) to comfort him. That's right: a team of 12-year-olds realized it was more important to hug it out with a crying pitcher than to celebrate their victory. Look, we can dissect this a million ways from yesterday. There may be some people making the argument that breaking down into tears after giving up a winning hit seems like an overreaction. I'm not about to begin to make assumptions about the backgrounds of these kids that might shed light onto those suggestions. Let's just take this for face value. After all, these are kids. And we all know that kids can be quite unpredictable. It was a nice moment captured during the tournament, and we can only hope that others see it and learn by example. As a self-proclaimed germaphobe, you'd think I wouldn't go for this. But thanks to the advance in hand sanitizers, I'm completely down with this.
Professional baseball has one major difference from other forms of baseball (outside of the rules of the game, the massive salaries, and a bunch of other things): no postgame handshakes between teams. If you watch a Little League game, a high school game, or even a college game, you will usually see both teams shaking hands after the final out. There may not be exact handshakes: high fives and fist bumps may take center stage instead, but the thought is there. It's a sign of mutual respect following competition. But if you watch an MLB game, the postgame handshakes only take place between members of the winning team. In fairness, a lot of handshakes between teams happen before the game. When the visiting team comes out for warmups and batting practice, the home team is usually wrapping up, so pleasantries are exchanged then. You may also see the same thing when players are doing wind sprints and other general exercises just before first pitch. However, Mike Metheny, who managed the St. Louis Cardinals during the inaugural Little League Classic in August 2017, thinks handshakes should be more common, and he got his wish following the event with the Pittsburgh Pirates. In an article for ESPN, Metheny went on record stating that he has actually asked opposing managers during playoff games that, if his team loses, it would be an honor if that team would shake the hands of his players. The other manager never went for it. But Clint Hurdle, his counterpart for the Pirates during that game, obliged. For the first time in a long time, the Cardinals and the Pirates shook hands and hugged each other following the game. Winning and losing didn't matter: both clubs realized what it was about. When asked about the possibility of this happening, Pirates shortstop Jordy Mercer said, "I wouldn't be opposed to it at all. Baseball's not bigger than life. If we can show some kids the proper way to do things, I'm all for it. Ultimately, the game's for them. That's the whole reason we changed the venue and made it in Williamsport. It's for the kids." Now that's sportsmanship. If you consider the counterpoint to this argument, there is some credence to the argument as to why baseball players don't shake hands after games. Unlike the other sports, players are very familiar with each other. They play 162 games per year, let alone every day. The last thing some guys want to do after going 0 for 4 is shake hands with the guys who made them look foolish on a steady diet of nasty breaking balls. In fact, some players believe that the contempt that would be bred with said familiarity would cause fights between players on the field. According to the same article, during 2013, the state of Kentucky banned postgame handshakes due to the fact that more than two dozen fights broke out in postgame handshakes. Hold on while I cancel my travel plans to Kentucky... I would buy the raw emotion argument that seems to preclude the tradition in baseball, but then I would ask why the tradition is still done in the NFL, NBA, NHL, and NCAA sporting events? Is baseball above this? They shouldn't be... It's an interesting conundrum that won't see change for some time, but if we can continue it following the Little League Classic, perhaps that's the first step into a larger world... In this three part series, we will examine some of the craziness of MLB umpires that took place during August 2017.
Okay, I have officially given up on the Sporting News. Joe Rivera is the latest to write the standard article about a disdain for umpires. He goes through the usual rhetoric about umpires not understanding people aren't there to see them officiate or knowing the name of an umpire. I get it. But enough is enough. Umpires make mistakes. But why are sports writers and fans so quick to criticize rather than empathize? Aren't we all prone to mistakes? I just can't take any more of these articles that take the time to call out officials. Do we ever praise officials for a good job? For every one time an official makes a mistake, there are a million other times they do their job properly! Ironically, the same day I read Rivera's article is the same day that Christopher "Mad Dog" Russo praised three umpires for three ejections in the same day! To summarize the ejections: 1. Stu Scheurwater ejected Mariners manager Scott Servais for arguing a check swing. 2. Chris Segal ejected Cardinals manager Mike Matheny for arguing "time" being called. 3. Chris Conroy ejected Cubs manager Joe Maddon for arguing a bunt attempt on a hit by pitch. And Mad Dog didn't even mention this one: 4. Lance Barksdale ejected Blue Jays manager John Gibbons for arguing balls and strikes. I'll save you the dissection of each situation, but I happen to agree with the umpires in every single one. It just goes to show you that praise never makes it way to umpires. Everyone knows about the bad stuff, but nobody remembers the good stuff. In this three part series, we will examine some of the craziness of MLB umpires that took place during August 2017.
Ian Kinsler took it too far. During a game in August, Kinsler was ejected by Angel Hernandez for arguing balls and strikes. Yes, Angel Hernandez is back. But this time, it wasn't over a lawsuit or an actual bad call. When Kinsler was tossed (and Hernandez got the call right), he went on a tirade that included pointing his bat in Hernandez's face. His comments included suggesting that "nobody wants [Hernandez] here" and that he should "re-evaluate his career choice." If you're that interested in finding an exact transcript, go search for it. It's so ridiculous that it doesn't deserve to be listed here. But Kinsler basically said Hernandez is "messing up baseball." If Kinsler had been ejected for something he didn't do, especially if it was his first career ejection, I can understand an overreaction, even if it's wrong. It's equivalent of being wrongfully accused of a crime: if you didn't do it, you'd shout it from the rooftops. But this isn't Kinsler's first rodeo. Look, I know that those in baseball who don't understand umpires (read: players, coaches, managers, etc.) see Angel Hernandez and immediately assume it's going to be a long day. But enough is enough. Hernandez was asked about Kinsler's comments and gave the proper response: he just wants to go out and do his job. Before the end of the series, however, Hernandez was working second base when Kinsler came out for the bottom of the first inning. The two shook hands and made up. Hernandez went as far as putting his hand on Kinsler's shoulder during the apology. Kinsler never publicly apologized for the comments and wouldn't elaborate on the exchange...probably because he's too proud and doesn't understand that real men can admit when they're wrong. (Also, at the time of writing this, Kinsler was not suspended for the comments. But if we've reached a point where we are rightly suspending players for homophobic slurs, suspending players for comments such as these should be warranted. A suspension here makes more sense than suspending Joe West for good-natured ribbing.) In this three part series, we will examine some of the craziness of MLB umpires that took place during August 2017.
If Joe Torre claims he doesn't have a grudge against umpires, then he may be lying through his teeth. Slightly over a month after Angel Hernandez filed a lawsuit against MLB over racial discrimination and the grudge that Torre has with him which is preventing him from being promoted to the position of crew chief and receiving World Series assignments, Blue Cowboy Joe West was suspended by MLB for three games over tongue-in-cheek comments made in an article praising him for umpiring his 5,000th career game. In the article, West was asked which MLB player complains the most to him over calls. West cited Adrian Beltre in a manner that was obviously equivalent to a good nature elbow to the ribs. Beltre had just reached the 3,000 hit club, a feat that usually guarantees a ticket to Cooperstown. (Beltre had also just been ejected by Gerry Davis, the other long tenured umpire, for showing him up by moving the on-deck circle when asked to stay in the circle.) The article was published earlier in the summer. However, West was handed a three-game suspension in August for the comment, citing an lack of impartiality and professionalism. There was no explanation regarding the delay in levying the punishment. Both Beltre and Rangers manager Jeff Bannister were asked about the comment and had the same reaction: they knew it was a joke. So why did MLB feel the need to send a message to West? We discuss the human element of sports all the time here. Umpires are people too. The relationship between umpires and players (and coaches) should be a bit more jovial in order to keep the seriousness in check. After all, it's a game. But I guess the bigger question is this: why is Joe Torre, a former player and manager, in charge of umpires? Most of the time, when I read anything from the Sporting News, it's garbage. But this article actually had some merit to it.
Ryan Davis did an article back in August about the human side of trading players mid-season. He caught up with Sean Doolittle as he was being traded from the Oakland Athletics to the Washington Nationals, which is a pretty big jump when you consider the distance traveled in both residences and playoff standings. Doolittle and his fiance both discussed the challenges they faced in relocating, specifically citing the attachments to their former lifestyles in Oakland. However, credit was given to the people involved in the process, such as the clubhouse attendants who did things like make sure their car was shipped as they hopped a flight, or that the lease on their place was assumed by another player. It's easy for the fans to forget that the guys in our favorite uniforms are more than just assets being utilized for competition. These are people with families and feelings. The wave of emotions that can sweep through a person when he is traded is immense, ranging from anxiety to depression. One of the most common feelings a traded player may experience is, "So my old team didn't want me anymore? They thought I wasn't any good?" Thankfully, this isn't usually the case in most trades, but it's a common human reaction. In Doolittle's case, the A's traded him because the Nats wanted him, not because the A's didn't. They needed arms in the bullpen who were competent and could help them in their playoff push. The A's weren't going anywhere that season, and the opportunity to receive younger talent with a chance for success in the future was worth more to them than to covet an asset in his prime during a time when a championship was not in the realm of possibilities. By contrast, consider the trade made between the Yankees and White Sox around the same time. One player who might have felt this emotion was Tyler Clippard. Clippard struggled for two months prior to the trade, so when the Yankees acquired David Robertson and Tommy Kahnle to upgrade their bullpen, Clippard was the pitcher who had to go based on his performance. The White Sox took Clippard back in the trade, which turned out to be smart on their part because they were able to flip him to the Houston Astros later to acquire more potential assets. The fact of the matter is that we, as fans, owe it to the sport and the players to keep our fandom in check insomuch as it concerns remembering the human element the players face in these situations. If you ever had to pick up and move because a parent got a new job out of state, perhaps you can relate to what these players experience. Although, the massive salaries probably ease that burden... Back in August, the world of Major League Baseball showed us another reason how the world of competition can come together to realize what is really important in life.
Colorado Rockies pitcher Chad Bettis spent most of the 2017 season battling testicular cancer. He was cleared of it prior to Spring Training, but it soon returned, forcing him to miss a large chunk of the season. However, on a Monday night in mid-August, he finally made his first appearance on a big league mound after more than two months of chemotherapy. The Rockies sent out a Tweet following his outing, which happened to be seven scoreless innings. The Tweet noted that the only score that mattered was "Chad Bettis 1, Cancer 0." And that's when the world of baseball tipped its proverbial cap. Almost immediately, teams began replying to the Tweet with personal messages of respect, and the Rockies responded to every single one. It was a symbolic gesture that opponents could send, noting that competition is purely between the lines and should always be respectful. More importantly, it showed that all the players are on the same team when it comes to the game of life. On July 31, the baseball world hovers around a device of choice listening to the news break of trades coming down before the non-waiver deadline. However, this past occurrence had some nice moments outside of trades worthy of highlighting, even if there were some detractors.
In Miami on what would have been the 25th birthday of the late Jose Fernandez, Gio Gonzalez took the mound for the visiting Washington Nationals to face the Miami Marlins. Gonzalez's wife was imminently due to go into labor with their child. Further, Gonzalez was good friends with Fernandez. So what does Gonzalez do? He falls one inning short of throwing a no-hitter. It was a moving scene as Gonzalez was taken out after giving up his first hit of the night. As he walked off the field, the crowd at Marlins park gave him a standing ovation. Giancarlo Stanton was on deck when Gonzalez was replaced, and even he took the time to applaud him as Gonzalez walked off the field. Gio gave a wave in the direction of Stanton, but he was actually waiving to Fernandez's family, who was sitting behind the Marlins' dugout. It was a nice moment where the baseball family was able to see that life and death was just a little bigger than the game. Of course, however, Marlins' manager Don Mattingly had to rain on the parade in his post-game comments, noting his team's poor performance and approach to Gonzalez, rather than just tipping his cap and moving on. It's not like the Marlins were in a pennant race anyway. Meanwhile, in New York, the Tigers and Yankees faced off after the Yankees had just acquired pitcher Sonny Gray. Tigers' right fielder Jim Adduci (who received regular playing time after Detroit traded JD Martinez to Arizona) made a spectacular catch to rob Todd Frazier of his first "cheap Yankee Stadium" home run (which is where the ball just barely scrapes over the right field porch in a notoriously easy manner). Frazier stopped in his tracks when he was overcome with a moment of disappointment, but it quickly dissipated as he walked back to the dugout. Frazier looked out to Adduci and tipped his helmet to him to congratulate him on the catch, which was a nice touch. Of course, however, the Detroit Tigers had to rain on the parade. Tigers' center fielder Mikie Mahtook was hit by a pitch twice in his at bats (once in the helmet), and first baseman Miguel Cabrera went on a rampage in the dugout after striking out that none of his teammates were protecting their team and hitting one of the Yankees. Pitcher Michael Fulmer (the reigning Rookie of the Year who was having an off-night) took the responsibility and drilled Yankees' center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury in the hip. The cameras immediately panned to Cabrera at first base when Yankees' first base coach Tony Pena walked over and began the conversation that was akin to asking why that was necessary when it was clear they weren't trying to purposely hit anybody. It was another instance of "plunking" that is one of the most ridiculous things in sports. Finally, as the Seattle Mariners visited the Texas Rangers, Mariners' ace pitcher Felix Hernandez took a moment in the bottom of the first inning to approach Rangers' third baseman at the batter's box and hug him in congratulating him on his achievement of reaching 3,000 career hits just one day prior. It was a nice human moment that caught many people by surprise. Even home plate umpire Doug Eddings took off his mask and approached Hernandez as if he was expecting some sort of fight to break out; when the hug broke out, Eddings went to fix his cap to save himself from awkward embarrassment. It was a funny moment that took a backseat to the important moment of took friends showing their human side during a pennant race. However, pundits like Christopher Russo had to rain on the parade. He opined in a self-proclaimed feisty rampage that nobody would approve of this behavior, from the coaching staff to the front office of each team. It was another throwback to the mindset of testosterone and machismo being the predominant driving forces behind athletic competition, rather than a more modern and reasonable approach of letting athletic ability be the determining factor and remembering that all of these professional baseball players are really on the same team of both one players' union and one human race. Let's hope that 2018 provides more examples of the good instead of the bad! |
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