Blog 20: Baseball Players Should Stop Fighting

Jeff Schwartz

Blog #20: Baseball Players Should Stop Fighting

August 4, 2010

Last night there was a sort of fight between a sort of Major League Baseball team in the Cleveland Indians and the broken down Boston Red Sox. There were no punches thrown but there was a lot of yelling, finger pointing, and half shoving. For the life of me I will never understand baseball fights. In very few cases are these fights ever legitimate fights. The last good baseball fight was Richie Sexson and Kason Gabbard. Sexson grabbed a headlock and put Gabbard into the ground. That was two years ago. In the mean time, there have been slap-fests and arguments but no legit fights. In last evening’s bench clearing shout-fest three people were tossed from the game. It was not because they were in the middle of the brawl either. There might as well have been a couple of podiums, a moderator, and decorum. I’ve seen civilized debates with more fury.

When Izzy Alcantara got hit, he super-kicked the catcher and charged to the mound looking for someone’s face to introduce to his fist. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHNhtiONEqQ

When Tim Belcher tried to bunt against Chan Ho Park, Park responded with a kick straight out of the original Karate Kid series of movies. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m412VUkqqwM

When Nolan Ryan drilled Robyn Ventura with a fastball, Ventura had enough and charged the mound. That didn’t end well for the former 3^rd baseman. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNETI5Abx0o

The fight last night featuring baseball luminaries like Jensen Lewis, Steve Smith, Shelley Duncan, Jordan Brown, of the Cleveland Indians was yet another pathetic display of on field behavior for this “Professional” baseball team. I realize there are injuries and that Rachel Phelps would be a better owner than Larry Dolan but if you’re going to charge the field and fight the opposing team throw some punches. Get fired up! Show some fire, passion, heart, and some balls. The apologists that run this baseball team have ruined baseball in Cleveland for far too long. I want to see these guys get excited to defend their manager, their team, themselves, and most importantly THEIR CITY. Thank God, Pure Rage Chris Perez wasn’t involved in this, he may have killed a Red Sox player. Cleveland’s a tough town, we’ve endured such heartache, the least these players could do is fight like we have on the field.