WHAT WOULD HAPPEN TO CATCHERS IN THE GOOD OL' DAYS?

Are we turning into a bunch of wimps? Seriously. I am a baseball fan, not a football fan, not a hockey fan, but a baseball fan.  While baseball is a lot of waiting around, you teach your players very early on to be moving on any and every play. You back up third base on a throw to 3^rd if you’re the left fielder. The second baseman should back up the pitcher in case there’s an over throw from the catcher to the pitcher, and if you have an opportunity to steal, even home plate, you go in hard, and if someone gets in your way, you barrel through them to get to the base.  That’s baseball. It's always has been that way.

Now, Major League Baseball is considering changing that, and yes, I get the safety reasons for why, but it will literally change everything about the catcher's role of protecting his territory…home plate.

Erica Morales, one of our top writers here at Bleeding Yankee Blue wrote a great piece Tuesday in reference to the “no more collision” idea in Major League Baseball.  If you haven’t seen it yet, I suggest you do. Read I GUESS CATCHERS CAN'T PROTECT THE PLATE ANYMORE? It’s spot on and we had a ton of feedback because of it.  The bottom line here is, Players need to play.

What would happen if Thurman Munson was told about this ban when he was playing? He’d probably tell Major League Baseball to “shove it.”  You can’t take the warrior out of a ball player. He would probably never change his approach, still waiting for the runner, still happy to try and hammer him back as he was attempting to run through his “zone.”  It’s what a catcher does… it’s a 1 on 1 battle that could literally change the momentum of the game. That 1 run can be crucial and the catcher knows that.  That also goes for the runner.

I remember reading a few years ago that Jorge Posada considered home plate "his" territory.  Then I remember seeing the picture Laura Posada posted on her Instagram of Jorge behind home plate, preparing his territory for battle.  

A catcher's role is critical and that’s why catchers become successful managers. They know more than many on the field.  But they also know that, much like a goalie in hockey or soccer, that if someone gets through them, they could blow the game.

While baseball isn’t about the viciousness that football is, it’s still important to play hard.  If you are standing on third with an opportunity to score gracefully, like maybe Ichiro in the ALDS last year against Matt Wieters and the Orioles, then do it.  After all, Ichiro can maneuver smoothly.  He’s tiny and he’s not busting past Wieters who looks like a wall in comparison, so you do it your way… I respect that.  

But do you ever think that Jackie Robinson was worried about hurting Yogi Berra? Do you think that David Ross saw a person when he rammed through Alex Avila? No, he saw the goal… get there, get home... win.

I’m not a mean spirited person, I don’t like when players get hurt.  But ironically, Avila did the exact same thing to Russell Martin in the ALCS in 2012 and no one said a thing.

Pete Rose ripped through Ray Fosse… it’s the game, and while it may not always be pretty, and while players sometimes get hurt… that’s what the player signed up for.  Catchers aren’t wimps… that’s why they’re catchers. 

Major League Baseball needs to stop acting like the dictator and start acting like Major League Baseball.  You want to protect the player? Come up with protect gear for pitchers so they don’t get concussions if they get whacked in the head on a comebacker.  Maybe enforce a stricter steroids fine instead of the one that’s currently NOT working.  Don’t strip the balls from the greatest sport on earth.  Players come to play… not to be told that they “can’t play hard.” 

This isn’t tee ball… this is the pros… can we get back to it please?

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I GUESS CATCHERS CAN'T PROTECT THE PLATE ANYMORE?

 

Above is a photo of the famous home plate collision between Pete Rose and Ray Fosse back in the All-Star game in 1970.  The difference was it was an All-Star game, not the regular season and in a game like that, the debate continues as to whether or not Rose went in too hard. But Rose was a competitor and that's how players are made. Ray Fosse is still bitter about the collision, read HERE.  But now, years later, something is changing in major league baseball. Not following? Keep reading...

With two home plate collisions during the ALCS, one that resulted in Alex Avila suffering a strained patellar tendon, the topic of safety has come to the forefront. More specifically the topic of home-plate collisions. Safety has been a big issue in the NFL in recent years. With information on concussions, and the cost of lawsuits they are now facing, it seems the safety conscience approach has trickled down to baseball.

In a report in ESPN (HERE), Tigers team official commented on the David Ross/Avila collision that resulted in injury for Avila saying "Ross did nothing wrong, because that's how everybody expects that play to go. But there is no place [in the game] to be raising an elbow into somebody's head or neck to knock the ball out. It's just dumb [for baseball]." I understand the sentiment. Home-plate collisions are dangerous. The result is injuries to catcher, including harmful concussions. It's serious, and scary, and we want our players to be safe, healthy, and uninjured. But the truth is, it is part of the game.

 

Most of these collisions are due to a runner trying to beat out a throw, and a catcher protecting the game. It's unfortunate, but it happens. Granted, purposely elbowing a catcher is unacceptable. You should never purposely put another athletes safety on the line. There is no reason for it. But to ban collisions? It leaves me to question what the rule will be. Are catchers expected to sit back and allow runs to score in order to avoid being injured? What happens in those cases where that one run does make the difference between a win, and a loss? The general idea is that one saved run is not worth the money invested on the players involved. Several people, including Jim Leyland, who sits on Bud Selig's advisory committee, think the play is unnecessary. They are calling for a change.

Do I think there needs to be rules against purposely taking actions that result in an injury? Of course I do! It's bad sportsmanship. But baseball is a sport. It is physical, and injuries are inevitable. That is why athletes have such strict work out routines. To build up muscle to be able to handle the physicality of their careers. And yes, that sometimes includes collisions, especially in the catchers position. It should have never been a matter of "if" a player gets injured, but "when" a player gets injured. We cannot wrap athletes up in bubble wrap.

At the end of the day, I want to see fewer injuries, but to ban home plate collisions are a little excessive to me. Yes, make it so that you cannot purposely injure the player. But a catchers job is to protect that plate, the way a runners job is to score that run. Why penalize these guys for doing their jobs? What is next? Banning outfielders from making jump catches at the wall, because the impact against the wall is dangerous? That padding isn't nearly enough to keep those guys safe. Or maybe we should ban running the bases altogether. You know running isn't really safe. One of those guys can trip and fall. Everyone should just walk from third to home, and positional players should just walk to catch the ball for an out.

Find a way to make players safer, that isn't ridiculous, and doesn't ruin the game.

--Erica Morales BYB Senior Writer
Twitter: @e_morales1804



The Bleeding Yankee Blue store is opened! CLICK HERE TO START SHOPPING! Also, follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue (Official) on Facebook, just type it in.