The Mark of Cain
August 16, 2009
I didn’t think I would be writing about baseball again this season, because it’s too painful too watch. But it just got more painful… literally.
The Mets have an outrageous number of injuries, and are generally playing like chickens with their heads cut off. The trade deadline passed tradelessly, and Omar Minaya confirmed their decision to throw in the towel by essentially saying the team isn’t even close to making the playoffs. I won’t even get into problems higher up in the organization.
Then Giants’ pitcher Matt Cain has to go and pick on the face of our franchise. He lobs a 94mph fastball inside with the count 0-2 at David Wright, who immediately collapses on the ground. I understand protecting the plate, but that effing guy has some balls. I don’t care what anyone says, you don’t throw at someone’s head. And if he lost control of his mechanics, he should fall on his sword and apologize. I never heard the words “I’m sorry” in interviews after the game. When asked if he would call Wright at the Hospital for Special Surgery, Cain said he might, or he might “just see him at the ballpark.”
Then the M-effing guy describes his immediate reaction was to wonder how bad David Wright was hit. Really? I mean, really? In a split second Wright dropped to ground. This was so fast, it was obviously not a conscious decision- his body gave out because he caught a 94mph fastball in the temple. That kind of collapse is pretty telling.
As if that’s not enough, esse chingadero (Matt Cain) explained in interviews why he tipped his cap to booing NY fans as he walked off the mound by simply shrugging, “New York.”
I’m not a believer in tit-for-tat, except when it comes to baseball. And I applaud Johan Santana; not for hitting Pablo Sandoval and Benjie Molina later in the game, but for answering reporters with aggressive aloofness. Did he hit Molina by accident? In Santana’s words, “I feel like I have to protect my teammates, you can call that whatever you want.” But did he retaliate on purpose? Maybe his first answer wasn’t clear enough: “I don’t have to explain anything.”
Damn Straight, Johan.
I’m 99.9 percent sure that taking a fastball to the temple is not very high on my list. It’s likely near the bottom, either before or after sticking needles in my eyes.
A wonderful channelling of rage into wit.
It took me a moment to figure out what an “M-effing guy” is, and a little longer to ascertain the meaning of “esse chingadero” (much the same thing, apparently).
This made a tough season even tougher. At least football is waiting in the wings…baseball’s been over for me since we started losing to the Nats and the Padres.
I’m a Yankee fan but please hear me out anyway…we’re not all bad.
I think we need to take the “intent” out of the equation.
When a batter is hit, and the replay shows that he was not doing so on purpose,
the pitcher should be ejected from the game.
We might even suspend him from a future game.
The offence would be losing control of the ball, not hitting the batter.
If a pitcher “loses control” too often, the suspensions would get longer.
Just a thought.
Regarding Santana’s comments, they bother me… maybe a little….but not too much.
Wright’s on the DL for 15 days now, and may be out for the season. . . How about suspending Matt Cain for 15 days?
How about an automatic suspension equal to the batter’s games missed but
in no event less than 15 or 20 games?
We would not get into the issue of accident or not.
For a second “accident” we could raise the minimum to 25 games.
I would like to stop the retaliation process since that batter did not do anything wrong.
This pitcher ranks up there with John Rocker of Atlanta. (I think that’s his name)
And why does everyone hate New York anyway?
A game-for-game suspension sounds like a good idea. There are a way too many cheap-shot-type things going on in team sports: clothes-lining in football, high-sticking in hockey, head-butting in soccer (okay, that was a one-off situation). Maybe the players are taking their protective gear too seriously.
If you were there it must have been a very intense moment in the stadium, I saw the play on TV but I think being there would have been a more intense emotional moment. I remember reading a book years ago about baseball and its history and that things like this did happen as part of the game. Back in the day if a batter came up and hit a home run or better with men on base then the next batter would get hit somewhere and that was the deal. Times and players were tougher then maybe. However I have to agree with you that this type of ball playing today is uncalled for. Cain should be punished, especially if he acted in an unsportsman like way after the act. Shame f&%$# him.
I was a Met fan as a kid but shifted to became a Yankee fan as a teen but as a true New Yorker I do still care and follow them. On another note I am very happy to hear that finally Citi Field is going to get some true Mets history on display in the halls. ’69, ’86 and ’00 Met moments. Tom Seaver etc…They belong there more than old Brooklyn Dodger stuff, the stadium should have never opened without it
In old times (meaning 19th century), baseballs were much bigger and softer, and pitchers were not allowed the same sort of delivery as today.
See:
http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/Outing/Volume_38/outXXXVIII04/outXXXVIII04m.pdf
and elsewhere. Because of these properties of the ball, home runs were much fewer, and getting hit by the ball was not nearly as bad or injurious. Changes in the ball and the emergence of Babe Ruth helped change the game from speed to power. Remember that Ruth originally set home run records with 29 in a single season and the career record with 139. Although I do hate the Yankees, Ruth’s greatness is usually underestimated because it is not compared to the players or conditions of his day. As the game became more about power, the bats, safety equipment (batting helmets, catcher masks, etc.), balls, and pitching delivery all evolved to reflect this.
So, there was never a time when players were getting hit in the head by a 94 mph, hard baseball and just brushing it off and not getting upset about it! That’s not about being tough but about being superhuman. Aluminum bats are not allowed in the pros because pitchers and infielders are afraid of getting nailed by incredibly hard hat hit balls. Batters need some similar protection, or pitchers need to face much harsher penalties for hit batters. Somehow, the penalties for hit batters have not evolved very much, but they should.
I will be in San Fran from the 27th to the 30th – going to the game on the 28th.
If I see Cain walking the streets, I’ll make sure to say a nice “hello” to him. This goes beyond being a Yankee fan or a Met fan. It is about Cain crossing the line as a competitor.
In the NFL, I remember Rod Woodson picking up Warren Moon turning him upside down and driving him into the turf. I’m pretty sure he broke Moon’s collarbone, which ended his season. Why not just sack the guy? If you have enough time to pick a guy up and turn him upside down, you certainly have enough time to hit him hard (real hard) in full stride. Never liked Woodson after that. This thing with Cain and Wright is similar. A serious crossing of the line …
I’m a Giants fan living in NYC and want to weigh in here.
First, it was clearly unintentional–the Mets had a runner on first and no outs in a 0-0 game. With an offense lucky to score 3 runs a game, you’d have to be a moron to put another runner on for no good reason, especially that early in the game. He was trying to waste a pitch with an 0-2 count and lost control of it.
Second, Cain was clearly distraught after. See: http://www.nypost.com/seven/08162009/sports/mets/cain_clearly_upset_by_beaning_184818.htm He went over to Brian Schneider and asked how Wright was doing.
Matt’s not a head-hunting kind of guy who delights in watching players hit the dirt, a la Roger Clemens. And he’s the furthest thing from John Rocker–after leaving a voicemail for Wright, Matt spoke with him on Monday at the park and the two of them acknowledged it was an accident.
Third, him tipping the cap had nothing to do with saluting sarcastic Mets fans. He was acknowledging a group of Giants owners sitting behind the dugout who made the trip–admittedly not the best time to do so, but again it wasn’t malicious. He was asked about the booing in response to that, and his answer was “New York.”
Just want everyone to sit back and get a little perspective on what happened before you start calling for 15 game suspensions for accidents. Intentional beanballs are another story–but there’s no need here to invent a villain to serve as a target for your frustration.
I’m not serious about a 15 game suspension, that would never happen. And I think the duel between batter and pitcher is an exciting part of baseball. Just miffed about this season.
I’m serious about the 15 games.
Assuming the pitcher didn’t mean to throw a bean ball,
if he’s that inept, that lacking in control, he needs to go
back to the minor leagues and practice a little more so
he doesn’t hurt someone.
I’d bet my bottom dollar that the number of hit batters
would trail of considerably.
Another battle in the 100+ year war as to whether the hitter or the pitcher owns the inside portion of the plate:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/joe_posnanski/08/17/beanballs/index.html
As hard as it may be to determine intent, it is relevant. Plunking a batter and putting the winning run on base in the bottom of the ninth? Insanity. Plunking the next batter after back-to-back homers? Well…
If it’s merely a case of someone whose unintentional wildness is endangering the batters, simply remove him from the game. No fine or suspension (either of which, or both, accompany an ejection), just an acknowledgment that today just isn’t the pitcher’s day and we’re getting him out of here before someone gets hurt and inspires retaliation. If his wildness is persistent, his team will quickly conclude that he needs more work and will send him down.
Just curious, have you gotten a response from Mr. Cain?
Definitely some interesting points on this subject. My only thought to add is treat hit batters like unsportsmanlike technical fouls in the NBA. After so many hit batters, and automatic fine. Some pitchers will go ahead and pay the fine without regard but there could be progression of the rule to limit this. The point is a way to keep track of aggressive pitching (not obviously intentional).
Limiting the protective gear worn by a batter on the arm is never going to happen. But a similar option could help if the umpire enforces the inside of the batter’s box (rule 6.06). Of course the line has to be clearly marked and a joke after the first few batters.
Hitting a batter can cause serious health issues and ruin careers but so can hitting pitchers. I never like high and inside pitching for just this reason. Learn how to pitch better.
What makes me laugh is when the pitcher is at bat, his heels are almost touching the outside of the batter’s box. If you are going to play with the boys……
Did you know, that n amateur baseball, both wooden and metal alloy bats are generally permitted. Recently there have been increasing numbers of “wooden bat leagues” and the trend back to wood seems to be accelerating due to safety concerns regarding the speed of a batted ball hit directly toward the pitcher’s head.
Coincidentally, I was at Citi Field on this very day. And my initial reaction was “that one got away from Cain” (and for the record, I’m an Orioles and Mets fan). And while no one likes getting a 94 MPH heater coming at their bucket, I think D-Wright even figured it wasn’t intentional. But as you may have figured out long ago, that incident pretty much summed up the Met season.
Which brings me to this…wonder what the Mets will be like this year?
So, a new baseball season is upon us, and what a better way to get into the “swing” of things (har, har, hardee, har, har) then a couple of great videos involving America’s second favorite pastime! (Regrettably, the farmville application on facebook just recently became number one with a gazillion users!!! Crazy, I know! Makes you wonder what this world is coming to?)
Anyway, here are the videos. One, a heartwarming story. The other, a classic. Enjoy.
Ps. I apologize for the derivative use of the word “swing” in the above sentence. Couldn’t help myself.
Pss. To be completely honest, I’m not even sure I used the word derivative correctly in the sentence that preceded this one!