Bautista’s hard slide into second base (and Odor) while trying to break up a double play Sunday led to the punch and an ensuing brawl. I can tell when somebody is coming hard to second base.
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“I know I am going to be suspended for a couple of games, but I am going to keep doing what I’m doing”.
Texas Rangers and Toronto Blue Jays tussle during the eighth inning of a baseball game in Arlington, Texas, Sunday, May 15, 2016. The tension was undoubtedly heightened by Bautista’s infamous bat flip following a three-run home run against Texas during last season’s American League Division Series.
As Bautista slide into second on a Justin Smoak flyout, Odor appeared to have targeted the face of Bautista with his release of the baseball in an attempt to turn a double play.
Cherry, talking on his Coach’s Corner segment during the first intermission of Game 2 of the Eastern Conference final between Tampa Bay and Pittsburgh, called the Rangers “gutless” for throwing a pitch at Bautista during his last at-bat of Sunday’s game. Odor shoved him and then beat Bautista to the punch with a right to the jaw as it looked as if Bautista was getting ready to punch him. As a middle infielder you prepare yourself for hard slides, but you don’t expect a runner to wait until they are on top of the base to start their slide as Bautista did.
As it appears on the video, Bautista and Odor are both preparing to fight…Bautista lifts his arm and Odor hit him first.
“I think you saw what happened yesterday”, Odor said Monday.
“Obviously we’re going to be issuing discipline”, Torre said Monday. We try to play hard.
Also, Banister is almost the opposite of Ron Washington, in that he seems to enjoy taking a new player and putting him in a somewhat high-leverage situation, just to prove that he has confidence in the guy. Sorry. Got carried away by the inner crotchety old man in me. Both teams left the dugouts again, although there were no more punches thrown. Odor received a four-game suspension for touching off the brawl. Bautista, Odor, Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson and Rangers bench coach Steve Buechele were ejected after the brawl.
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Once the field cleared and the game resumed, and on the first pitch, Blue Jays reliever Jesse Chavez fired one into the ample thigh of Prince Fielder. Absolutely not … those actions by Rougned Odor were deplorable and I hope he serves a long suspension because of it. “In the heat of the moment, I think everyone in here did what they think is right to protect our guy”. Yes, old-school ballplayers have weighed in saying that the “bat flip” was excessive and a disgrace and they’ll now say he got what he deserved and EVERYBODY GET OFF MY LAWN.
