If Jose Botista’s home run and bat flip flip in the 2015 playoffs were baseball’s culture wars and the excitement of “playing the game the right way”, then it seemed like we’d come to the issue. Beginning in the postshean of 2018 and continuing into 2019, MLB also ran an advertising campaign featuring Ken Griffe Jr., “Let the kids play.”
However, two incidents from Monday night indicate that old-school confidence can be called a strong foothold in the game. In the eighth inning of the Padres-Rangers game, Fernando Tatis Jr. won 3–0 with a 10–3 lead and a stunning slam win over Rangers rival Juan Nicasio. Tatis missed out on a take sign, but the Rangers clearly did not like the Padres gaining such a big lead. Ian Gibbut, a pitcher with 24 career innings in the majors, replaced Exacio and threw his first pitch behind Manny Machado’s head.
“I didn’t like it, personally,” Rangers manager Chris Woodward said of Tatis’ 3-0 swing. “But, as I said, the norm is being challenged on a daily basis. So just because I don’t like it is not right. I don’t think we liked it as a group.”
Meanwhile, at the National-Braves game, Juan Soto raced a 445-foot ninth inning home run by Brave reliever Will Smith to give the Nationals a 6-3 lead in time (rally to win in the Braves floor Will) ninth). Soto praised his home run once or twice – certainly not until he fancied some of his other explosions – and Smith then did an Extensive Bark at Soto, leaving only a slow one around the bases. Slope also arose.
National manager Dave Martinez defended his young superstar after the game. “Will Smith said something to Soto that I didn’t really appreciate,” Martinez said. “So I just want to tell him, hey, it wasn’t Juan who threw the ball. His job is to just kill you and shut up on the mound. You threw the pitch, make the pitch better.”
Buster Olney and as I discussed on the Baseball Podcast this morning, this is the bottom line: Throw a better pitch. Just because you’re down seven runs and you don’t have the right to throw a 3-0 fastball in the middle and expect an easy strike. The job of thirty-three is to defeat you – no matter what, no matter the count. Soto’s job is to defeat you – and if God doesn’t, he has some fun in the process and you don’t like it, consult Martinez.
Former Astro pitcher Colin McHugh, who was out of play in 2020, had a nice tweet at Tatis’ house:
In this data, baseball is age driven, there is nowhere to hide. If you have a tendency, it is going to be exploited. A 3–0 swing, for me, is similar to swinging the first pitch of an AB. If you do this enough times, a pitcher cannot plan against you.
– Collin McHugh (@Collin_McHugh) August 18, 2020
Tatis was sounding after the game. “I’ve been in the game since I was a kid,” he said. “I know a lot of unwritten rules. I was lost that way. Those experiences, you have to learn. Maybe next time, I’ll take a pitch.”
As Woodward said, however, unwritten rules are changing. In 2019, players lost 11.1% of the time on a 3–0 pitch. As McHugh said, if you throw a 3–0 pitch in the middle, you are aware of the possible consequences. Even after leading by five or more runs, players fall to 3–0 pitches 5.2% of the time. The rate is almost double what they were doing in 2009, when players went 3–5 5.3% of the time and only 2.2% of the time with five-plus runs. The game develops – even though unwritten rules are sometimes not.
Former big league pitcher Ron Darling, now an analyst with the Mets and MLB Network, addressed trouble with unwritten rules on MLB Network and defended Tatis. “I’m old enough that I grew up in a game that had all the power of a lot of old people and they would tell you how to act, what to do, and you did what they told you to do Because that’s how it was, “she said. “Written rules only work when everyone knows the unwritten rules. By their definition, no one knows the unwritten rules, so what you have now is you are trying to decide what the seven runs are. What’s the 3-0 count in the game. Off limits. I’m not with him at all. ”
This is all kind of stupidity. If Tatis had crushed a first pitch fastball or even a 2–0 fastball, no one would have raised an eyebrow. But because it was 3–0, it somehow, what, destroyed the integrity of the game? Hurt Juan Nicosio’s feelings? This is not Little League. He is trying to run, to hit home runs, to run. Sure, the seven-run lead with two innings is pretty safe, but you never know. The Giants took a five-run lead in the ninth inning on the second night.
It could be argued that Tatis risked his teammates. It only goes back to the circle of beanball baseball. Gibut may be endangered his Teammates running after Machado. What would happen if the Rangers retaliated by throwing a Rangers hitter? As for Soto, it is evident that some of his antics at the plate provoked opponents unfairly – dragging, cup adjustments, an air of confidence Does Recruitment limit on prodigy. However, it is important to understand the cultural aspects here. Both Tatis and Soto are Dominicans, and Latin players often play the game with more temperament – no different from the Korea Baseball Organization, where bat flips are almost an artistic aspect of the game.
“He has nothing to do with what he does,” Martinez told Soto after Monday’s game. “When he makes his reshuffle, he has to take it to the next pitch. He doesn’t do it to show anyone, he doesn’t – it’s annoying when the pitchers are acting the way they are Starts. Me. But he doesn’t return anything. He stands there and gets a good pitch to hit and he hits the ball very hard. That’s what you’re gonna do. ”
Both Tat and Sot have been doing this. Both are just 21 years old and are yet to emerge as two of the best Hitler in the game, as well as Generational-type players, along with Mike Trout. Tatis is hitting .305 / .383 / .726 and leads majors in home runs (11), RBI (28), runs (22) and total bases (69). If the MVP votes today, he will likely be the landslide winner. Soto missed the start of the season with a positive COVID test, but in his 12 games he runs more than seven home runs and strikes. When he started in 198 with a .406 OBP in 2018, his approach and plate discipline drew comparisons to Ted Williams. With this debut, he is showing that is not a crazy proposition.
Hey @tatis_jr listen:
1) If you want the game to be any, keep swinging 3-0
2) Keep hitting homers, no matter what the situation
3) Keep bringing energy and flash to baseball and make it fun
4) The only thing you did wrong is apologize. Stop.– Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) August 18, 2020
Fernando Tatis works hard and continues to play great, it’s a pleasure to see you play, love your success and be the winner of Padre. Keep moving forward It is not easy to hit Hrs. You have to bring energy to the game, we need players like you. An all star
– Reggie Jackson (@mroctober) August 18, 2020
So, yes, let the children play. Make them swing 3–0. Let them praise your home run. And opponents were better to use it because they were going to hit too much of them.
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