Viz couldn't be any worse. http://houston.astros.mlb.com/NASAp...40730&content_id=814054&vkey=pr_mlb&fext=.jsp
I hate to go here on a Friday, but its a shame this incident didn't get the coverage it deserved. The guy grab an umpires collar and was pushing on him in the process. I saw a replay of it exactly once, and it got hardly any play on the local talk shows. Unbelievable.
he was not happy with the ump's strike 2 call so he shouted him down and they both ended up grabbing each other's shirt for about 20 - 30 seconds. The count was 2-2 and then Kent was thrown out of the game following the fracas. Viz came in for him with the 2-2 count and hit a long single 'in the gap' to right field allowing Bigg to score from second. I thought the purnishment could have been worse.
That's because the umpire he grabbed wasn't the one he had a problem with.... that umpire was merely trying to keep him from the home-plate umpire (and... btw, the umpire Kent was holding on to was the one who first initiated the contact... it wasn't like Kent grabbed him, he was just reciprocating. In fact, at one point, you could clearly see Kent say, "Get your hands off me.") I'm pretty sure Kent's suspension is more due to getting in the umpire's face, kicking dirt all over the place, causing the game to get delayed, etc. I'd be really dissapointed in the "sensitivity" of these umps if Kent's suspension was due to the "restraint" the other umpire was providing. Besides... Ortiz freakin throws bats in the umpire's direction, and gets 5 games?!? This is nowhere near as bad.
Arod and Varitek got 4 games a piece for causing an all out brawl. I think 3 games is too much for Kent.
I dunno... normally its players and managers holding these tirading players back, and they never see more than a 1-2 game suspension. In this case, the umpire actively took a role in restraining Kent, by physically placing HIS hands on Jeff. It wasn't like Jeff was looking to grab an umpire... Granted, he shouldn't have done anything... but you don't normally see other umpires physically restrain players... they let the coaches and bench players do that.
yeah..it should be noted here that the umpire grabbed Kent FIRST. he had him by the shirt and was pushing him back. man, i'd have a hard time, particularly when arguing and heated up, not grabbing the other guy's shirt too. i get the 3 game suspension, but i actually thought it would be less, because i know that the umpire grabbing first has served as a mitigating factor for other players, as well.