Category Archives: Don't Showboat
Watch and Learn: Cespedes’ First Code Lesson
Last weekend brought us this season’s first incident of a foreign player being brought quickly up to speed with this country’s baseball mores. It also brought us the lesson that reticence doesn’t always count for a whole lot. The student: … Continue reading
Filed under Don't Showboat, Foreign players, Yoenes Cespedes, Yoenes Cespedes
How Not to Retaliate, No Matter How Much a Guy Deserves it, Anaheim Edition
Yesterday’s Jered Weaver-Carlos Guillen histrionics seemed to mesmerize the nation. I wrote about it for Sports Illustrated.com, tying it in to last week’s Carlos Carrasco-Billy Butler fiasco. Both had the same trigger—a player watching a home run longer than the … Continue reading
Filed under Appropriate Retaliation, Carlos Guillen, Jered Weaver, Retaliation
Pride, Punches and Papi: Things to do when Your Team is Getting Hammered
David Ortiz charged the mound on Friday. What he thought he was doing was putting an end to some half-baked intimidation tactics from Orioles pitcher Kevin Gregg. What he actually did, however, held significantly more interest. With one inspired charge … Continue reading
Hey, Pitcher: Bryce Harper Sends his Love
At this point, the minor leagues are a mixed bag for Bryce Harper. On one hand, he has to deal with long bus rides and crappy clubhouse food. On the other hand, accounts of the firestorm he ignited yesterday by … Continue reading
Filed under Don't Showboat
Scott Flips Bat, Beckett Flips Out
With all the recent flap about Felipe Lopez’s bat flip against the White Sox, it seems worth pointing out that he’s not the only guy doing such things this season. Last week, Orioles outfielder Luke Scott tossed his bat with … Continue reading
Filed under Bat tossing, Don't Showboat, Josh Beckett, Luke Scott
Bautista’s Game-Winning Homer Conveys Message, then he Conveys it Again
Jose Bautista’s first home run Monday meant little on its own, save for being the slugger’s major league-leading 39th of the season. His second home run Monday meant a lot more, at least to him. The difference: What happened in … Continue reading
Filed under Don't Showboat, Jose Bautista, Retaliation
War of Words Brews in Motown Following Valverde’s Dramatics
We got a Code twofer this weekend, with on-field actions drawing a response that is itself governed by baseball’s unwritten rules. It started with Tigers closer Jose Valverde, whose antics atop a pitcher’s mound are well established. He spins, spits, … Continue reading
Phillips Preens, Nats Respond
The Code was at work Saturday in Washington—and it worked perfectly. There was Cincinnati’s Brandon Phillips, pounding his chest in the eighth inning after dislodging the ball from Nationals catcher Wil Nieves on a play at the plate, the run … Continue reading
Filed under Brandon Phillips, Don't Showboat, Miguel Batista
Gomez Flips, Trips, Quips – and Ultimately Slips out of Trouble
As has long been trumpeted in this space, the unwritten rules are less about on-field actions than the meaning behind those actions. It’s why something as innocuous as a stolen base can serve to enrage an entire roster should it … Continue reading
Filed under Carlos Gomez, Don't Showboat
Padilla, Ramirez, Dodgers Get off Scott-Free Against Giants
In September, Prince Fielder did his bowling-pin routine against the Giants. The next time they faced him, this spring, Fielder was drilled in response. The Dodgers, apparently, are held to a significantly lower standard. On Friday, Los Angeles right-hander Vicente … Continue reading
