"any way possible"?? i trust you don't mean that. sounds like elvis andrus should be your favorite baserunner of all-time if so.
Like I said I never was a fan of going out of your way (as in out of the path) to blatantly take out a player but to call such bs is really disappointing. Remember Watt getting bs calls after the new qb rule? It's like they like making an example out of us. Tired of it!
Within reason...of course I don't condone intentionally injuring somebody. But I was well aware that there are certain risks of. Injury in this seemingly non contact sport.
Springer Altuve Correa Reed White DH Rasmus Gomez Moran Gattis C Would be a fun lineup in a couple months.
With that lineup we can have a weak hitting, good defensive catcher like Castro, but Gattis would be a very good back up catcher. Also, i would keep Valbuena hitting 7th or 8th in our lineup, as he is very good defensively. Now, Moran should be our 3b next year.
Fister is going to need 10 runs. This is the game I was worried about coming into the series. Maybe the Astros should start the first inning with a relief pitcher and have the starter begin in the 2nd. Maybe we'll get through the first g-damn inning !!
Just giving my 2 cents.. it's a clear violation of the rule. I'm totally fine with the call. Regardless of whether the DP would have been turned (it wouldn't have), Rasmus shouldn't have been sliding off the base towards the player's leg like he did. The penalty is an out at 1st base. I don't think it's "assuming a DP" as much as penalizing the violation of the rule. (Semantics, sure--but that's how I get past that "you shouldn't assume things that haven't happened" bit..) I do like the rule as is. I don't want to create a "charge/block"-type call in baseball where we require the umpire to judge intent of the player ("are they trying to injure someone? How hard was the slide exactly?") or the likelihood of turning the DP. I'm happy with the clearly defined rule, and I think if enforced, it will change behavior to make it safer. I get that there weren't a ton of injuries on that play, so the need is questionable. But at the same time, I don't think it really changes the game very much. They're not doing something akin to moving the 3 point line in.. In fact, to me, this is way less impactful to the game than removing catcher-ramming. Players just have to get used to it is all.
It's a reasonable opinion, but I think there's a difference between what Rasmus did today and what players like Utley have done in the past. Sliding to prevent a double play can differ from a slide that is reckless and can potentially cause an injury. I think when it's as obviously harmless as what Rasmus did, they have to make a judgment call. Like most rules in sports, this rule requires subjectivity because there are gray areas. As it currently stands, it's harming the integrity of the game.
This rule will be changed. MLB Tonight was already talking about it. It's costing way too many games.
bizzare start to the season, got punked by chris carter and ex astros. can't complain about the rasmus call since I wanted it out of the league. however, rasmus did it the way you're supposed to do it, not with the intention to kill the baseman like the rangers do.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Reminder: 2.4% of the baseball season is complete</p>— Thickie Don (@AstrosCounty) <a href="https://twitter.com/AstrosCounty/status/718806170866061312">April 9, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">So to use maths, there is still 97.6% of the baseball season left</p>— Thickie Don (@AstrosCounty) <a href="https://twitter.com/AstrosCounty/status/718806620310867968">April 9, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
I'm not against trying to keep all things safe within the structure of the game as is. Improved helmets/protective gear, eliminating bad playing surfaces, improved medical equipment (on-site imaging, hot-tub/whirlpool), improved playing environments (more retractable roofs), better technology when it comes to shoes/spikes, braces/guards, vision correction/eye protection, etc. But when they start manipulating how the game is actually played (and has been played for the last century)... there is some concern, even if its all being done for safety. Like I said earlier, why not eliminate inside pitches... or the risk of players running into walls. Hell, they better well get rid of the brick wall at Wrigley as somebody could literally kill themselves out there (actually, that last point is a real concern) I just believe there is inherent risk in playing any pro sport... its never going to be completely safe in its entirety. In regards to this specific rule... like somebody brought up earlier, there is a right and wrong way to attempt to break up double plays. What Rasmus did last night, while being against the new rules, was the right way to attempt to break things up. What Utley did last year, and what the Rangers routinely do, is the wrong way. I would have been fine with massive fines/suspensions for each offense... that alone would have been enough to curtail this sort of behavior, rather than a rule change that will effectively make a double play a far easier task.
Here's what The Cat tweeted out a moment ago... <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Many "rules" are dumb, and the only way to improve the situation for the future is for them to be called out. It's not a hard concept.</p>— Ben DuBose (@BenDuBose) <a href="https://twitter.com/BenDuBose/status/718817297066893312">April 9, 2016</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The game hasn't been played the same way for the last century - it's always evolving and changing to make the game better for fans and better for players. Safety is a part of that. All sorts of things that were allowed or happened decades ago don't happen today - everything from reducing the # of pitches thrown to protect arms to not allowing players to intentionally hit each other with baseballs, and on and on. People b****ed about the catcher interference changes a few years back and now no one things anything of it. And you have less catchers being seriously injured. Players adjust, fans adjust, the game ends up safer and no one thinks about it anymore. Maybe you save a few broken legs or torn ACLs in the process. I don't see the problem here.
Everything you just listed prior are merely adjustments (not rule changes) within the construct of the game itself. Again, I'm all for that. The catcher interference was a rule change. However, it still came into play infrequently enough to where while there was similar complaints about it, it didn't really affect games on a day-in/day-out basis (you're also still allowed to make contact with the catcher... or knock the ball out... just not excessively). This rule won't be as silent. There's very likely been an attempt (and by rule now, an illegal play) to break up a double play in nearly every single game ever played. What most likely happens is that players just stop sliding into 2nd altogether (and give up on the play), which does cause a fundamental change to how the game is played (and again, a double play should never be presumed... in large part to its degree of difficulty... but now, its essentially been neutered). Like I said earlier... why not eliminate all potential collisions within the field, or into a wall, or inside pitches, or slides altogether (actually, more ACL tears and broken limbs have occurred on slides vs. broken up double plays).... there's a lot of things that remain exceedingly unsafe about playing baseball that they can (and may continue) to change.
I agree. I have never liked the break-up-the double-play slide. It has been part of the major league, like forever. Likewise it has *not* been part of the lower levels, like little league. I suspect that the MLB players will have the new rule sorted out by the end of the April and the new rule will stop being an issue.
