We oft hear of the "unwritten rules of baseball". Things like not mentioning a no-hitter, not walking between the catcher and pitcher, not stepping on the pitcher's mound when you're on offense, retaliating for one of your teammates being hit by a pitch, etc.
I think the reason that these rules are unwritten is because they are too stupid to write down.
Case in point, last night's Nationals vs Cubs games.
The Nationals have the best record in baseball. The Cubs, well, they have a better record than the Astros.
Last night the Nationals were beating the Cubs 7 - 2 in the 5th inning when this thing happened.
http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=24549273
The Nationals had been putting it to the Cubs in this series, outscoring them 29 - 8 at that point. Apparently, Cubs' bench coach, Jamie Quirk, began yelling at Nationals' 3rd basecoach, Bo Porter, about Jayson Werth swinging at a 3-0 pitch with the bases loaded and the Nationals up by 5 runs.
The fracas eventually cleared, Werth hit a long flyball to right field and order was restored.
Until the bottom of the 6th inning when this happened.
http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=24549587
Harper was the next Nationals batter after Jayson Werth and Cubs' pitcher, Lendy Castillo, appears to try and hit him with a pitch.
I'll admit I don't know exactly what happened and I'm doing some speculation and mind reading here.
Apparently the Cubs felt that Werth should not have been swinging 3-0 up by 5 runs. That's when things first started. Why should Werth not have done that? I don't know. Up by 5 the Nationals should quite trying to win because the game has already been decided? That's certainly not true. The Yankees had a 5-run inning that same night. A 5-run lead is a good lead, but certainly not insurmountable. But, maybe, the Cubs felt the Nationals should stop playing to win at that point.
Dumb
But it gets even dumber.
If the Cubs felt that that Nationals should stop trying to win the game, why were the Cubs still trying to win the game?
How do we know the Cubs were trying to win the game? Because they didn't throw at Jayson Werth in the 5th inning.
Lendy Castillo could very easily have thrown a 3-1 fastball at Werth right after the 'inappropriate' swing. But he didn't. Why? Because the bases were loaded. Throwing at Werth would have given the Nationals another run. Why wouldn't the Cubs want the Nationals to score another run? Because the Cubs were still trying to win the game. If the Cubs are still trying to win the game, then, by any type of logic, the Nationals should also still be trying to win the game.
Apparently that type of logic eludes a frightening portion of individuals involved with Major League Baseball.
So, instead of throwing at Jayson Werth, the Cubs wait until the next inning to throw at Bryce Harper.
Harper has been at the center of controversy before.
http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=21230055
There were a faction of idiots who felt that 'the punk' Harper deserved this.
There is another faction, that includes me, who thinks that Harper is an amazing player who combines outstanding natural talent with maximum effort as evidenced by his steal of home against Hamels and this similar play made in the first inning of the game against the Cubs. Of course, Harper got to 3rd base by combining his talent and hustle on this triple.
The Nationals are having an amazing season because they combine talent with hard work, hustle, and smart baseball. The Cubs are looking up at them and should look up to them instead of engaging in this petty nonsense.
I think the reason that these rules are unwritten is because they are too stupid to write down.
Case in point, last night's Nationals vs Cubs games.
The Nationals have the best record in baseball. The Cubs, well, they have a better record than the Astros.
Last night the Nationals were beating the Cubs 7 - 2 in the 5th inning when this thing happened.
http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=24549273
The Nationals had been putting it to the Cubs in this series, outscoring them 29 - 8 at that point. Apparently, Cubs' bench coach, Jamie Quirk, began yelling at Nationals' 3rd basecoach, Bo Porter, about Jayson Werth swinging at a 3-0 pitch with the bases loaded and the Nationals up by 5 runs.
The fracas eventually cleared, Werth hit a long flyball to right field and order was restored.
Until the bottom of the 6th inning when this happened.
http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=24549587
Harper was the next Nationals batter after Jayson Werth and Cubs' pitcher, Lendy Castillo, appears to try and hit him with a pitch.
I'll admit I don't know exactly what happened and I'm doing some speculation and mind reading here.
Apparently the Cubs felt that Werth should not have been swinging 3-0 up by 5 runs. That's when things first started. Why should Werth not have done that? I don't know. Up by 5 the Nationals should quite trying to win because the game has already been decided? That's certainly not true. The Yankees had a 5-run inning that same night. A 5-run lead is a good lead, but certainly not insurmountable. But, maybe, the Cubs felt the Nationals should stop playing to win at that point.
Dumb
But it gets even dumber.
If the Cubs felt that that Nationals should stop trying to win the game, why were the Cubs still trying to win the game?
How do we know the Cubs were trying to win the game? Because they didn't throw at Jayson Werth in the 5th inning.
Lendy Castillo could very easily have thrown a 3-1 fastball at Werth right after the 'inappropriate' swing. But he didn't. Why? Because the bases were loaded. Throwing at Werth would have given the Nationals another run. Why wouldn't the Cubs want the Nationals to score another run? Because the Cubs were still trying to win the game. If the Cubs are still trying to win the game, then, by any type of logic, the Nationals should also still be trying to win the game.
Apparently that type of logic eludes a frightening portion of individuals involved with Major League Baseball.
So, instead of throwing at Jayson Werth, the Cubs wait until the next inning to throw at Bryce Harper.
Harper has been at the center of controversy before.
http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=21230055
There were a faction of idiots who felt that 'the punk' Harper deserved this.
There is another faction, that includes me, who thinks that Harper is an amazing player who combines outstanding natural talent with maximum effort as evidenced by his steal of home against Hamels and this similar play made in the first inning of the game against the Cubs. Of course, Harper got to 3rd base by combining his talent and hustle on this triple.
The Nationals are having an amazing season because they combine talent with hard work, hustle, and smart baseball. The Cubs are looking up at them and should look up to them instead of engaging in this petty nonsense.
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