Thanks for clarifying. The articles certainly didn't.
It makes a lot more sense all around that way.
I am in favor of old time baseball stuff, as long as it makes sense. The way the articles had it it looked like retaliation for an accident rather than a message about coming too far in without good control in a situation where it's not really needed.
I do have to say the worst I saw was Gaston ordering some young pitcher to hit a batter, continuing to order it after he failed 2-3 times, then leaving the rattled kid in to take a huge beating since he couldn't pitch anymore. The pitcher was actually coming off the mound gesturing that he wanted out and had no idea what was going on. And Gaston turned away from the field and ignored him the whole time. The announcers were horrified, even the umpire kept looking into the dugout but not actually interfering. And I think the other team actually laid off and ended the inning after scoring a bunch of runs.
Steve B
Quote:
Originally Posted by nolemmings
Goldy was hit with one out and nobody on in the bottom of the ninth of a 9-4 loss. I was "lucky" enough to have been there. His AB was meaningless due to a bullpen explosion that allowed a 4-4 tie to get out of hand; ironically, he had been given the night off but entered in the 9th in a double switch.
I doubt it was intentional, but it knocked out the Dbacks' best player for the season. If the message was to let the Pirates know not to throw inside unless you can control it, then I would say the message was received. If you don't believe in such messages then fine, I get it, but it has been going on in baseball for a long time and I would not look for it to end soon. BTW, it was the exact time to send that message-- hit the equivalent player when the game is not on the line and when you had an open base. Hit him in a relatively safe spot--the butt is preferred but not where you might break a bone.
Oh and by the way, guess who leads MLB in hitting batters this season-- the Pirates by a large margin with 61-- the next closest is 49. They have almost twice as many as Arizona (32). So Pirates fans, prepare to have your players get plunked on a regular basis if your staff is doing more of the same, and maybe think twice before starting the name calling.
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