Should "The Code" Be Cracked?
- Friday, March 5, 2010 11:08 AM
- Written By: Andrew Simon
Baseball, perhaps more than any other sport, loves its unwritten rules.
One of the most stringent is "Don't show up thine opponent, or expect to get plunked." A guy showboats, and he better watch his back the next time he steps up.
But is it right?
We saw this scenario played out again -- in Spring Training -- yesterday, when Barry Zito nailed Prince Fielder in the back in the first inning. The reason behind it, acknowledged by most everyone except a fine-averse Zito, was Fielder's celebration after a walk-off homer against the Giants last September.
You can see the original offending incident here.
My feeling is that Fielder and the Brewers were having some fun after a dramatic moment on their home field. If you don't want to see that kind of thing happen, don't give up the home run. And if you want to get revenge, strike him out next time.
At least Zito had the sense to hit Fielder in a padded area (not that it's difficult), but it's still something I'd rather not see.
But maybe that's just me. What do you all think?
Retaliation via HBP: acceptable part of the game, or dangerous and silly artifact of another era?
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