Thursday, September 12, 2013

Braves Versus Marlins Brawl

Wednesday, September 11, the Atlanta Braves played the Miami Marlins. The Marlins ended up on top, winning 4 to 1, but in my opinion, showcased a very poor play of the game of baseball.

Rookie pitcher Jose Fernandez showcased his youthful energies Wednesday night as he threw another gem in his wonderful first year as a professional baseball player. But, for me, there was a terrible blight on his performance that night.

Evan Gattis crushed a pitch thrown by Fernandez and for a split second watched the path of the ball. When a hitter "pimps" a home run, it's the equivalent of saying to a pitcher, "yeah, I just made you look terrible!" 


Fernandez did not take lightly to the way Gattis carried himself after this bomb, and when Chris Johnson came up to the plate, and was gotten out by Fernandez, words were exchanged between the two players.

During the next inning, Fernandez came to the batter's box. Unbelievably, Fernandez hit a home run further than Gattis'. However, the rookie pitcher, flung the bat, and stood at home plate for more than five seconds before beginning to trot around the bases. While rounding third base, where Johnson plays, Fernandez bent down and spit on the bag. This immature behavior was not taken lightly by Braves catcher Brian McCann who was waiting for Fernandez at home plate!

Words were exchanged between the two players and Johnson came running towards Fernandez to speak his mind. There was a little pushing and shoving but the umpires handled the situation well warning both teams and no players or coaches were ejected. 


McCann was just explaining to the young Fernandez that his antics were not acceptable at this level of play. Fernandez later apologized but this behavior does not sit well with me and, although he's an exceptional ball player, he does not have my respect as a sportsman.

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