I've said this to my friends and I'll say it here. There is NO way that pitch was planned. Are you forgetting what team we're talking about? This team is about winning and they sure in the heck aren't going to let their emotions supercede their position to potentially win a game. A game that by the way is game five of the ALCS (tied 2-2). That said you're going to hit a batter to put men on 1st and 2nd with no outs trailing 4-2 in the bottom of the 8th inning?? You can call the Astros a lot of things but stupid isn't one of them and hitting him on purpose in that situation would be STUPID!! On top of that, the pitch was so wide, if Garcia somehow got out of the way it's a wild pitch and now there's a man on 3rd with no outs which gives them two opportunities for a SF to go up 5-2. So again remember what team you're talking about here.
I think Abreu threw it where he threw it on purpose to send a message. That's what you do to clowns that showboat. Garcia did not do a very good job to get out of the way of the pitch. If he would have just went to first instead of making a big deal of it nothing would have came of it and the Rangers would have probably won the game. Instead he acted like the ass that he is and Garcia lit a fire that led to our incredible comeback. Thank you Garcia.
Intentional, no... but if it happened to hit him, so be it. They threw up/in to Altuve in game 4. Chapman threw up/in to Yordan yesterday. Those guys got out of the way of balls at their head. Garcia's reaction... which was well within his control... is what escalated things. If the Astros did all of this by design, and they knew he'd react that way, that's next-level Mensa stuff.
@Trader_Jorge @NIKEstrad @Major I stand corrected on where the runner was. Chalk it up to old age and fog of war. That said, I stand by everything else I've said.
Yes there was a runner on 1st when he was hit. So don't know why I went with another poster saying he was on 2nd and then mentioning that a wild pitch would've put the runner on 3rd with no outs and giving them two opportunities for a SF to go up 5-2. So with the runner at 1st and say Garcia gets out of the way and it's a wild pitch the runner is now at 2nd with no outs (and in scoring position). The Astros just are NOT doing that (hitting him on purpose)!!
Another Rangers player, granted anonymity in exchange for his candor, essentially accused Maldonado of masterminding the whole thing. “One of the best relievers in baseball just suddenly lost command?” the player asked, referring to Abreu. “Maldonado’s smart. They got exactly what they wanted, Adolis riled up. Crazy coincidence, isn’t it?” Maldonado is certainly smart. He also can be an irritant. And evidently, he is inside the Rangers’ heads. If Maldonado is playing the kind of three-dimensional chess the Rangers player suggested, some team should hire him immediately as player-manager. But if anyone deserves to get hit, it’s Anabolic “roid rage” Garcia and Marvin Hudson. “Wearing this jersey, having Adolis be my teammate, it feels pretty intentional. There’s a history, obviously, between these two teams. I’m sure Alvarez didn’t like the ball high and tight to him either. But in today’s game, we throw fastballs up. If you want to get emotional about something like that and take it out on a guy that hit a three-run homer, that’s too bad. I don’t really stand for it.” But what about the game situation? Wasn’t it an odd time for Abreu to hit García? “It’s a beautiful excuse, isn’t it?” Lowe asked. “That’s how I view it. When half your bench is running out in a hurry and guys on the injured list want to run their mouth and starters who aren’t involved want to get involved, it seems like there are more emotions tied in than gameplay.” Spoiler
I said intentional. Just got a text from my buddy who pitched 4 years in college and 10 years in pro ball that said 100% intentional.
It was intentional. It's no coincidence Garcia after doing his HR antics gets HBP in his very next AB. Astros did it there because there's the built-in excuse of game situation. Just like Pedro Martinez getting ahead 0-2 in the count then hitting someone. Built-in excuse. Abreu is awesome enough to overcome 2 on, no outs. Plus the Astros were likely to lose the game anyway. Astros were clearly sending a message for the remainder of the series.
I'm about 50/50 on whether it was on purpose. Very risky move given the situation, but part of me thinks this was because they knew Garcia was a dumbass jerkoff that would cause a big disruption and mess with Declerq who had to come back out. Even if not premeditated, at a minimum after the ejection Dusty prolonged his departure on purpose to further ice Declerq.
To me, it looked like he lost control of the pitch. Why would you intentionally put a runner in scoring position?
I wish it was intentional because it would make Machete or Dusty look like geniuses on hindsight. But given the circumstances of being 2 runs down with a man on first, I highly doubt it was intentional. If it was, it would be borderline reckless, which isn't their MO.
If Martin Maldonado really did orchestrate this (and I can totally see him telling Baker, “Trust me.”), the Astros need to retire his number before game 6.
I told my wife immediately after I saw Garcia pimp his homer that he needs to get hit next time he comes up. My vote is intentional with the built in excuse of game situation. I also think dusty dragged ass to further the delay and ice leclerc
You want to put a runner on 2nd on second with 0 outs in a close game in the 8th. A bunt and a sac fly gives you a run. That makes 0 sense. We just got lucky they didn't score.
There’s a lot of speculation here. 1. That Garcia would go after Maldy. 2. That the Rangers would clear their bench. 3. That Dusty gets ejected. 4. That the Astros could hold two runners on without scoring. 5. That LeClerc was going to be cold. 6. That Pressley wouldn’t be stressed himself Going for a 5 out save. 7. That it wouldnt fire the Rangers up in their next at bat. 8. That they wouldn’t retaliate going after Altuve the next at bat. It just seems like too many variables for a Team that considers the numbers very closely.
