SPANISH HARLEM – Fernando Tatis, Jr. and Juan Soto were ridiculed this week for what some people believe are disrespectful to The Unwritten Rules in Baseball.
If you haven’t seen or heard about it, here is what happened: Tatis, while his team was up 10-3 against the Texas Rangers, crushed at a 3-0 pitch for a Grand Slam. The problem is that his manager gave him the take sign and he either ignored it or didn’t see it. Somehow, there is an unwritten rule that you don’t swing at a 3-0 count when up by a big lead.
That is horsesh*t.
When did the gods decide that a player has take a pitch because his team is winning? What happens if Tatis takes that pitch and walks or makes an out and the Rangers come back to win? It’s possible and has happened to teams before but Tatis was expected to take a pitch down the middle because his team was winning? The game was not won, mind you, but when your winning a game you have to be respectful to the other team. Cry Me a River!
Juan Soto, who has hit some crazy bombs in his career, was caught staring at one of his mammoth home runs. That led the pitcher to throw a few expletives at him… Pitchers need to understand that if you don’t want someone to hit a long home run on you, you have to pitch better. Most pitchers pump their fist after a big strikeout but hitters can’t admire their work. This is nonsense and it has to end. This is professional sports and if you don’t like it then quit your job. That won’t happen because of the barrels of money at stake but when a guy sucks, he wants players to respect the unwritten rules of baseball. That’s not the way life works and it shouldn’t have to work that way in baseball. Remember what that one brilliant man [Tom Hanks] once said, “There is no crying in baseball!” (Great movie, by the way).
The NBA, Football, Soccer and Hockey (to my knowledge) have embraced the modern game and realized that fans love when players celebrate. I remember a time when people would hate on players for dancing after a touchdown, but now you have players highlighting specific plays – like a big sack or a big first down. Has the world ended? While some may believe it’s the beginning of the end, we’re moving on just fine… Hell, soccer have players doing routines that will make every American football fan cry for how long they go on but it’s definitely not killing the sport… Hockey is quite similar, in that players throw themselves on the ice and/or jump over their teammates after big goals – but nobody, Cheesy Bruin, Different Matt & Cam James included – is complaining.
Yet…
Baseball has old the guard; those who refuse to let the sport be great. Take a lesson from the Koreans, who have mastered the bat-flip. No one over there goes batsh*it crazy (No #COVID jokes).
Rules are meant to be broken and these unwritten rules have to go. The game is constantly changing and there is no reason to look back because the people and the cultures have changed. Baseball is not a sport for Americans-only. Not everyone sees the game the same or knows the unwritten rules. Nowadays, you beat the sh*t out of your opponent and go home. If you don’t like that… then play better!
Comment below and come back tomorrow for Replacement Matt.
Until The Next Time…
