Then some payback came for Hill, who was planning to walk on at Gordon College in Barnesville, Ga., next season. He got the word from Gordon coach Travis McClanahan, who said, Forget it, we don't want you. "I've seen catchers get crossed up before," says McClanahan. "But he appeared to be blocking a curveball in the dirt. I was shocked. I've never seen that happen. I've never heard of a player even suggesting doing that." Well, Travis, I guess you haven't been around much. I wouldn't say this is common, but I've seen it at least twice in high-school games. Both times I was working the field, and yes, both times the plate umpire was squeezing the holy hell out of the pitcher. In the first instance the catcher did a lousy acting job pulling his mitt out of the way, but the pitcher did a worse job and fired it over the top of the ump's head. The second time I saw, the catcher just leaned outside and the pitcher drilled the ump in the chest. In neither case were there any consequences because the plate ump didn't realize what had happened. I did make a point between innings to go in and tell the pitcher's coach to instruct his players that if I saw anything even remotely similar, I would toss the catcher, the pitcher and the entire coaching staff, resulting in a forfeit. The first case I didn't get ever get a clear-cut answer, but in the second instance the catcher eventually told me they were throwing at the umpire. This was a year or so later, and he swore it was the pitcher's idea and that the coaches had no involvement. It's tough to make a judgment call about this at the time because there's really no way to prove the charge -- but in this case, had I been the field umpire and had a clear view, I would have tossed them both. Pretty blatant, but they may have held their tongues in a championship game so as not to alter the outcome, especially when the offending team was already getting their just desserts.
frazer, I also think that this game stands out because it was recorded. Very few high school games are filmed from a center field perspective. It wasn't until the league was able to view the replay that any disiplinary action was taken. I know that you've called a ton more games than I have, so I'm not surprised to hear that you've witnessed this type of behavior.
Then some payback came for Hill, who was planning to walk on at Gordon College in Barnesville, Ga., next season. He got the word from Gordon coach Travis McClanahan, who said, Forget it, we don't want you. "I've seen catchers get crossed up before," says McClanahan. "But he appeared to be blocking a curveball in the dirt. I was shocked. I've never seen that happen. I've never heard of a player even suggesting doing that." I seem to remember a player throwing a bat at an umpire and he's already back in the league...Kids do stupid shit and they should pay for it, by being suspended for a few games or whatever, but to take away their future is just an over-the-top reaction. He made a mistake, luckily umpires wear all that gear, so nobody was hurt. They just showed on sportscience that even if you get hit directly in the head (wearing a helmet) with a 95 mph fastball, it will not cause any concussive damage. They guys life wasn't at risk. I'm not saying by any means that the kids actions were justifiable, buy I am sure that almost everyone has done something when they were a kid that they regret now. I flipped off a referee in a basketball game before and got 3 techs. When I look back at it now it makes me cringe to think that I took a game that seriously...
This thread has taken the odd turn of defending (to some degree) the reprehensible behavior of two athletes who should have been better guided by their coaches. Should what they did go unpunished? A "severe warning"? That ought to do it. Right. I am in no position, obviously, to mete out punishment for this utterly classless and gutless act, but I know what my gut tells me when I see that video. How do they learn if they are not expected to have to face consequences for their actions? And then one day they, or someone who has seen this, becomes a major leaguer and does something that is morally objectionable or illegal because they see that they will be given a pass or slap on the wrist and we'll all come back to SpoFi and complain how there are two different sets of rules for elite athletes and the rest of us.
THX: I don't see anyone saying they should go unpunished. Rather, I think it's that their entire future shouldn't be sunk for one stupid decision. Complain how there are two different sets of rules for elite athletes and the rest of us. I gave up complaining about it a long time ago...I'm at the point where I consider it a fact of life and just move on.
This is kind of contradictory. At first you say you believe the catcher, then you say you don't. Which is it? If you actually read what I wrote and not just copied and pasted it, you would see that nowhere did I say that I believed the catcher being crossed up like you insinuated. What I did say was that the catcher said that he got crossed up and if that's what he said then that's what he said but IMO, I don't believe him and I think it was intentional. Does that answer your question?
I don't think anyone can say for sure the pitcher intentionally threw at the umpire and the catcher ducked on purpose. It will be very hard to prove in court. I would like to find out if the umpire had any history of incidents with players or coaches that stand out from the norm. If I was defending these players in court I would ask these questions to the jury. Why would a pitcher throw a curveball if he was trying to hit the umpire, especially considering the pitcher is right handed facing a right handed batter which is the hardest possible way to hit the umpire as the batter is in the way. Also I would show that the curve ball, which might not have curved as much as hoped, appears to either hit the helmet (not known for sure) or come close to the batters head causing him to duck which could have caused the catcher to think the ball was going to glance off and possibly hit him, causing him to duck. If you look at the video the catcher is still trying to catch the ball, and is on his knees as you would expecting a curveball to prevent it from getting by with a runner on base, just before it gets close to the helmet. I've seen catchers duck and turn their heads fearing getting struck with balls that are not over the plate. It would be hard to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the catcher intentionally ducked with plans to hit the umpire. The curve ball and close location to the batters head makes this a reasonable explanation. The catcher saying what he did makes sense if he was expecting a curve that he thought could have hit the batters head and then him. Another item of doubt is the pitcher is worried about the runner, looking back at him, which makes no sense if he is going to hit the umpire with the pitch. For the umpire to get an attorney over this makes me wonder about his attitude as well. If this goes to trial, only the attorneys will make money. Both sides will lose money. IMHO
I don't think anyone can say for sure the pitcher intentionally threw at the umpire and the catcher ducked on purpose. It will be very hard to prove in court. No way. The catcher ducking is obvious. You can infer intent based on their actions. Maybe the pitcher could tell a story that he just threw what the catcher asked him and had no idea, but who knows if that would even be credible. This is a losing proposition because the umpire suffered a headache, but finished the game anyway. How much money can he possible expect to get for suffering a headache?
jmd--I never said anyone here said they should go unpunished, I was saying that some folks were defending, to an extent, the actions of the two players. I just thought that getting a severe warning was like doing nothing. And as far as their entire future is concerned, why does it have to be baseball? I've done just fine without being a professional athlete. And I've been pretty successful in my chosen profession by trying to be a decent person. If these two players are going to have that type of disregard for the officials of the game, why do they deserve a future in baseball? Yelling and arguing and throwing a fit are one thing. Throwing a baseball at someone's head, deliberately mask or not, is borderline criminal. How much money can he possible expect to get for suffering a headache? I'm no lawyer, but I think if he saw a doctor within 24 hours of the incident he may have a case. Hell, depending on how shady the ump was, he could start saying stuff like his vision is starting to go blurry or that he has trouble remembering things. But that sort of thing wouldn't teach the two ball payers anything.
I hardly think rescinding an offer to a WALK ON catcher is taking away his future. He would've been a #5 catcher and catching bullpens for his 2 years in college. If you want to spin it that way though, he took the opportunity away from himself when he joined in the little plot to hit the ump. Kids (and many adults) need to learn that there are consequences for their actions. I applaud Coach McClanahan for his decision. No one else even punished the kid.
To me this just sounds like a pitcher and catcher that were tired of a small strike zone trying to get even. Not saying it was right but in the end its nothing compared to the pithcer who beaned the kid in the on deck circle because he thought the kid was tryin to steal signs.
I played baseball from the time I was 9 years old up through High School as a pitcher. I do know that once in a while I would lose control of a toss and I would earn an error. My specialty was the curve ball and I had control of it when I was in Jr. High. By the time I was in High School I had good aim and could throw to the target, the catcher's mit. I admit that I did not always agree with the Ump, but I didn't try to bean him in the noggin, which is directly tied to the coach. My coach would pull us if we started to lose our cool, because he know we weren't of any use if we could concentrate on the game or our pitches. These kids were frustrated and I would have been also losing at that point of the game. The ball the kid threw was a curve ball but was thrown too high. I think the penality they earned is appropriate. The Umpire though, if all he got was a headache, should be glad that it wasn't a fastball and about 2-3 inches lower. I'm not agreeing to what the kids did which is obvious when watching the catcher who started to put his mit up but quickly pulled it down when he dropped to his knees. I would focus on the coach not the players. My old coach wouldn't have placed us on the bench permanently for trying to hurt someone, rather he would have kicked us off the team. Did the coach try to cool down the little hot heads or let them be because they were Star-players? If he did nothing and just let things be; he should be coaching T-Ball, not High school baseball.
If you were trying to hit the umpire why would you throw a curveball to a right handed batter from a right handed pitcher with the umpire standing behind the catcher's left shoulder. That is ABSOLUTELY the hardest possible combination to get to the umpire's head. The easiest way to hit the umpire, if you were trying, would be to do it with a left handed batter at the plate. That way the batter is not in the line of a right handed pitcher, the umpire will be looking over the catcher's right shoulder making the line to the umpire the most open and a fast ball could be thrown. It makes no sense to do it the way it is claimed.
