Should A Bat Flip Warrant A Flip Out?

Carlos Gomez is in the news once again, and once again it’s not on a high note.

If you recall back to September 25th of last season, Gomez, after blasting a homer against the Braves and admiring it as it soared into the seats, had a few choice words for Freddie Freeman and Chris Johnson as he rounded the bases. Brian McCann, the Braves’ catcher at the time, didn’t approve of Gomez’s actions and blocked his path to home plate, causing both Gomez and McCann to flare up and both benches to clear.

On Sunday afternoon, it was deja vu for Gomez.

While it involved the Pirates this time instead of the Braves, Gomez launched what he thought was a home run and proceeded to flip his bat before jogging down towards first. The ball didn’t have as much behind it as originally thought, however, causing it to hit off the top of the wall and roll away from the centerfielder, Andrew McCutchen. With his speed, Gomez still wound up at third base, where pitcher Gerrit Cole, who was backing up the base, let his feelings be known regarding Gomez’s jog.

Gomez didn’t like what was said by Cole, causing him to flip out, having to be withheld by the umpire from charging Cole. While Cole’s exact words aren’t known (if they were, I’m certain I couldn’t publish them here), he claims to have said nothing more than “if you’re going to hit a home run, you can watch it. If you’re going to hit a fly ball to center field, don’t watch it.” That, however, was apparently enough to create an all-out brawl:

Due to their involvement in the altercation, Martin Maldonado (arguably the player who had the most involvement, punching Travis Snider square in the face) received a five game suspension, with Gomez getting three, Travis Snider having two sit out two, and Russell Martin being forced to be benched for a game. (All received undisclosed fines.)

As happens with most fights on the field, one side has their own opinion to what happened and who was at fault, with the other side having just the opposite to say. Gomez remains adamant that he did nothing wrong, saying, “I’m not apologizing for nothing I did. This is my job; I’ve been doing it for eight years like that. They know I play like that. It’s not to disrespect nobody.” But not everyone agrees with that.

What it comes down to is your definition of what “showing up” the opposing team means.

In this particular instance with Gomez, I feel this is in fact the way he plays, and therefore it shouldn’t have caused such a big fuss. Gomez is well known for his playing style, and the bat flip should’ve been expected from him. However, with that said, Gomez is, in my mind, the one to blame for the fight. Sure, if Cole hadn’t said anything to Gomez, all would’ve been well. But Cole was just letting his thoughts be known. He has the same right to show emotion as Gomez does.

Carlos Gomez is a great player, and like some players, it takes a mentality such as his to succeed at the big league level, and therefore I’m not saying he’s a bad guy or that he needs to tone down his antics. I enjoy his “celebrations”, as some have coined them, and don’t really want them to stop, as that’s who he is. However, he needs to realize that with his bat flips and slow trots comes trash talk from the opposing team, and he can’t let that get the better of him.

It’s all just part of the game.

First Non-Losing Record for Pirates Since 1992

With a win on Tuesday night, against the Milwaukee Brewers, the Pittsburg Pirates secured a non-losing record for the first time since 1992.

Letting that sink in for a minute — their first .500 or above season in 21 years — this is a big deal. Not only for the Pirates and their fans, but for fans of all teams around the baseball world. Anytime a teams goes on such a bad skid for so long, you find yourself rooting for them to succeed. And that’s just what everyone has been doing as of late.

But now isn’t the time to celebrate, according to many. While the Pirates have accomplished something great, by their recent standards, they still need to keep their focus on winning; which they will assuredly do. Although they will undoubtedly make the playoffs, they still determine their own fate, in terms of whether their playoff appearance will be via a division title, or a Wild Card spot — the title, obviously, being their goal.

Many, however, don’t see the Pirates as having a good enough team to hold off the Cardinals and Reds for first place in the National League Central, but I have to disagree. While the Reds and Cardinals are both excellent teams, the Pirates are a completely different team than they have been in years past. A team that I could see making a deep playoff push.

The Pirates have a decent pitching staff — in veterans A.J. Burnett and Jason Grilli (their closer), as well as rookie Gerritt Cole — and while they haven’t been anywhere near dominant for the majority of the year, they’ve found a way to come through in big games–the same holding true for the rest of the team. Andrew McCutchen has had a great season, and newly acquired players, Justin Morneau and Marlon Byrd, are sure to help out in the final stretch.

With just over three weeks remaining in the regular season, where anything can happen, it’s game on in the National League Central. The Pirates, Cardinals and Reds are likely to exchange places a few times in the standings before all is said and done, but in the end, I feel that the Pirates’ magic they’ve had all season long will continue into the post season.