Tempers Flare In Royals vs White Sox Game: Brings Up A New Debate
By Colin Dixon April 18th, 2019
Picture Via @MLB Twitter
In the Fourth Inning of yesterdays Royals vs White Sox game, Tim Anderson hit an absolute bomb of a home run and his bat flip led to the benches clearing later in the Sixth inning when he came back to the plate.
Here was a frame by frame of the bat flip which was used from the Chicago White Sox Twitter. Anderson's bat flip blew up all over social media with people praising his use of emotion but his opponents were not a fan of the bat flip.
Later in the game when Anderson stepped up to the plate to lead of the Sixth Inning, Royals Pitcher Brad Keller drilled him with a fastball in the first pitch of the at-bat.
Anderson looked visibly mad so Royals Catcher Martin Maldonado got in his way and tried to prevent him from starting any sort of brawl. As soon as that happened the benches were cleared and the teams exchanged some words but nothing between any players.
But both Managers got into it as they were both holding on to each other screaming and yelling while players and umpires got in between to try to calm down the feud.
There were four ejections that were handed out: Pitcher Brad Keller (Royals), Shortstop Tim Anderson (White Sox), Manager Rick Renteria (White Sox), and Hitting Coach Dale Sveum (Royals).
This feud brings up the debate: Was there an emotional line crossed in this game?
The League preaches its saying "Let the kids play," meaning that they want everyone to play with emotion and play the game how they want to. All the fans love watching their favorite players show emotion whether they are flipping the bat, popping their chair, pumping their fist or many other things, but do the players need to tone it down?
I say no, as a kid who has grown up in the era of sports where showboating has become okay, and displaying your swagger has become a big part of sports, I believe that there is no line to cross. Unless it gets personal where a player is calling out someone or saying something directed towards someone, I think there is no bad emotion, especially on the baseball field.
I want every pitcher to jump up and down and pump their fist when they strike someone out or walk off the field. I want every player to pimp their no doubt home runs. I want every teammate watching in the dugout to go crazy and celebrate the success of their teammates. As the MLB says "Let the kids play," and let the players have fun and use their platform to express themselves.
The old school approach to baseball and sports as a whole may look down at this opinion but this is where sports are heading and players need to not take a bat flip so seriously and they need to go out make a statement of their own.
Obviously in the game yesterday Brad Keller decided to throw at Tim Anderson, but if Keller had decided to pitch to him and ended up striking him out I would not have cared if he did a cartwheel to celebrate and I don't think Anderson would have either.
Baseball is becoming a sport where it is easy to display your emotions and I hope that the MLB does not take any precautions to stop what is taking place right now because it is becoming must watch for all the fans and it has added another element to the game that lets the players have fun.
In the Fourth Inning of yesterdays Royals vs White Sox game, Tim Anderson hit an absolute bomb of a home run and his bat flip led to the benches clearing later in the Sixth inning when he came back to the plate.
Later in the game when Anderson stepped up to the plate to lead of the Sixth Inning, Royals Pitcher Brad Keller drilled him with a fastball in the first pitch of the at-bat.
Anderson looked visibly mad so Royals Catcher Martin Maldonado got in his way and tried to prevent him from starting any sort of brawl. As soon as that happened the benches were cleared and the teams exchanged some words but nothing between any players.
But both Managers got into it as they were both holding on to each other screaming and yelling while players and umpires got in between to try to calm down the feud.
There were four ejections that were handed out: Pitcher Brad Keller (Royals), Shortstop Tim Anderson (White Sox), Manager Rick Renteria (White Sox), and Hitting Coach Dale Sveum (Royals).
This feud brings up the debate: Was there an emotional line crossed in this game?
The League preaches its saying "Let the kids play," meaning that they want everyone to play with emotion and play the game how they want to. All the fans love watching their favorite players show emotion whether they are flipping the bat, popping their chair, pumping their fist or many other things, but do the players need to tone it down?
I say no, as a kid who has grown up in the era of sports where showboating has become okay, and displaying your swagger has become a big part of sports, I believe that there is no line to cross. Unless it gets personal where a player is calling out someone or saying something directed towards someone, I think there is no bad emotion, especially on the baseball field.
I want every pitcher to jump up and down and pump their fist when they strike someone out or walk off the field. I want every player to pimp their no doubt home runs. I want every teammate watching in the dugout to go crazy and celebrate the success of their teammates. As the MLB says "Let the kids play," and let the players have fun and use their platform to express themselves.
The old school approach to baseball and sports as a whole may look down at this opinion but this is where sports are heading and players need to not take a bat flip so seriously and they need to go out make a statement of their own.
Obviously in the game yesterday Brad Keller decided to throw at Tim Anderson, but if Keller had decided to pitch to him and ended up striking him out I would not have cared if he did a cartwheel to celebrate and I don't think Anderson would have either.
Baseball is becoming a sport where it is easy to display your emotions and I hope that the MLB does not take any precautions to stop what is taking place right now because it is becoming must watch for all the fans and it has added another element to the game that lets the players have fun.
