The Anderson Saga (continued from game thread)

[Dick Allen]

I would probably be more old school than not, but I don't mind emotion in the game. I get the act like you've been there. That's fine and works for guys like Harold Baines. But watch a little league game. Those guys are thrilled when they do something good. All the way through college, there is a lot of emotion. 

I do think the reaction to tying a game against the lowly Royals in the middle of April probably was a bit much, but they can have a crazy celebration if they strike him out.  There is a time and place for celebrating. A halfback getting a first down with 3 minutes to go in a game with his team down 40 points really shouldn't act like a ref and give the first down signal. The guy on the Bears who hurt himself celebrating a sack a couple of years ago while the game was out of hand on the losing side was way overboard.  

Times have changed. You have to roll with them. When I was in high school, my dad offered me $100 to wave at the ball when I hit a home run. I never did it, but not because I would have been thrown at. That wouldn't have happened. I probably would have caught some flack in the handshake line after the game.  I just thought I would be known as a jackass. Bat flips weren't a thing back then. But now, I don't mind them at all when they make at least some sense. 

[Look at Ray Ray Run]

1 hour ago, JoshPR said:

About the theatrics.... I can see if its a game winner in an important game or I can see a fist pump cause your happy and you go off in the dugout or clapping and saying come on with emotion but Timmy showboats every homer. He did it when he them claimed he was falling. The thing is if a team does it to us just like the totals we will be upset and bean them and this board will go off. Again emotion is great and needed but know how to do it. You can get yourself or a team mate hurt. What would this board say if they threw at Moncada and broke his hand or wrist and has done for the season and his career affected... Put it in perspective...

It would be Tim's fault if the Royals threw at moncada intentionally and broke his hand?

[NWINFan]

How about this? How about having a winning season for a change?

[Look at Ray Ray Run]

I'll say this, you found out who the leader of the team was yesterday. Playing with a guy like Anderson is A LOT of fun. He gives you energy when it may be lacking. He keeps you honest in regards to your effort and he reminds you that this is supposed to be fun. 

Anderson would have been a heck of a guy to play with that's for sure. I loved the gif of Alcides Escobar doing this same thing for the Royals last year.

As for "act like you've been there," I'll say I'm not a big fan. Having been somewhere before doesnt make it not fun anymore or exciting. It's like telling someone who's had sex to be stoic and act like you've had it before lol.

[mqr]

Whenever stuff like this comes up I just like to ask people who get mad at the batter or say he had it coming why? And 99% of the time it comes down to ‘well, that’s just the way it goes’. That drives me nuts because the way it goes is dumb and bad for the overall health of the game. 

Throwing at a guy for putting your team in danger is one thing, in fact, I might say there’s a place for it. But throwing at a guy for hurting your feelings or going against some arbitrary made up nonsense is chicken shit. How man games would anderson get if he went and punched Keller square in the ribs after he fist pumped a strikeout? 30? 40? It’s all absurdly dumb.  

[The Sir]

1 hour ago, NWINFan said:

First, I think it was a low class thing to throw at Anderson. But I don't like theatrics. Sammy's homer hop not only got old, it affected his game. One time his drive went off the wall and he only got a single. Another drive went off the wall and he got thrown out at second. Run the ball out and celebrate later and play the damned game like it is supposed to be played.

Like I said in another post, Tim is just coming into his own.  He doesn't need this distraction. Secondly, he is still developing and still has to improve at his position. Homers are great but errors and dumb plays in the field are not.  Tim can be a real star. He needs to cut this nonsense and become the great player he can become.

The difference is that Sosa did that garbage. Every. Single. Time. That's why he did stupid things like getting thrown out at second, because he did the stupid hop on hits that were far from no-doubters.

Every single person in the park knew that was gone when Tim hit it. He killed it. I'll have a problem if Tim starts doing it on hard hit balls that stay in the yard, because that looks idiotic. But to do it once on what will probably be one of the longer homeruns of the year? Go for it!

[Dick Allen]

One thing to keep in mind, they did hit Anderson in the ass.  If you are going to hit a guy, that is the classiest place to hit him. If they hit him anywhere else, there could have been big trouble.

[Look at Ray Ray Run]

5 minutes ago, Dick Allen said:

One thing to keep in mind, they did hit Anderson in the ass.  If you are going to hit a guy, that is the classiest place to hit him. If they hit him anywhere else, there could have been big trouble.

Yeah, but even Keller (who has great control) can't guarantee the ball doesn't slip and hit him in the head or hand or knee. Getting hit by a 94 MPH pitch really hurts. 

MLB has CLEARLY taken a side in this situation, and they have sided with Anderson. He is what the league is trying to promote. Check out MLB's official twitter yesterday; they literally tweet at Tim and tell him to keep being himself. This is what the game wants. Guys like Tim help promote the game. 

[SCCWS]

11 hours ago, Chicago White Sox said:

I think people are confusing two things here.  It’s one thing to not like seeing a guy celebrate at your expense (who can blame them).  It’s a whole different animal to feel compelled to throw a baseball at them in retaliation.  

Keller doesn’t have to enjoy Timmy’s emotion, but he’s a pretty big b**** to throw a 90+ MPH fastball at him cause he feels disrespected, especially when Tim doesn’t get the opportunity to throw one back at him.  Pitchers feel this underserved sense of power because they’re the only ones who can “accidentally” hit an opponent and that’s a huge fucking problem.

Actually I am amazed that a batter never loses control of his bat on a swing and it "'accidentally" heads towards the mound.  

[hogan873]

I think one of the biggest thing lost in all of this was Tim's reaction.  He seemed to take it well and was talking to Maldanado like "I get it, we're cool".  It was after the benches emptied that things spun out of control.

As for Tim, I love it.  This team has needed an attitude and he brings it.  Yeah, they suck right now, but he's going to be a big part of the future.  When (hopefully) his team gets good, they're going to need to bring that type of attitude.  As someone else posted earlier, we saw yesterday who the leader of this team is.

[JoshPR]

That's fine. Its just different viewpoints that's all. Some people don't mind it and others are old school nothing wrong with that.

[JoshPR]

56 minutes ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said:

It would be Tim's fault if the Royals threw at moncada intentionally and broke his hand?

In part yes. But again. This is my opinion. I like emotion don't get me wrong. But you should respect your opponent. Again if it would have been the other way around this board would have rioted

[JoshPR]

2 minutes ago, Tony said:

Because baseball still won't let go of their "unwritten rules," that means batters are still at risk of getting hit by a 90 MPH+ projectile because they did their job well. 

There is absolutely something wrong with that. 

You know they're never gonna get rid of those its been around for the 100 something years the game has been played. Are they right? Are they wrong? Again its a matter of who you ask.

[Look at Ray Ray Run]

4 minutes ago, JoshPR said:

In part yes. But again. This is my opinion. I like emotion don't get me wrong. But you should respect your opponent. Again if it would have been the other way around this board would have rioted

It would not be Tim's fault. Come on... 

I wouldnt have been partaking in the riot that's for sure. I love that stuff in baseball and I can honestly say when someone did it to me in high school or college it never once bothered me.

Now if you come into second spikes high, try to injure my teammate or do something dirty, that's a different story.

[bmags]

Had Tim hit the home run and stared down the pitcher, or the catcher, then I get it a bit more. But the "not showing respect for the opponent" stuff is weak. Drawing attention to your accomplishment (demonstrative bat flip, cheering at teammates) should not be considered disrespectful.

There could certainly be a line thats crossed, but so long as its in celebration and geared toward teammates, I think it is absolutely awful to justify doing something that could seriously injure.

He was hit in the butt this time, but contrary to popular belief, pitchers aren't that accurate, and also routinely lose control of the ball. It's a dangerous, dumb act, one that's quite disrespectful to the game.

[bmags]

Let's continue the anderson discussion here since the game threads get confusing. Going to move some posts in 

[mqr]

11 minutes ago, JoshPR said:

You know they're never gonna get rid of those its been around for the 100 something years the game has been played. Are they right? Are they wrong? Again its a matter of who you ask.

Suspend guys for a month when they hit someone on purpose. Done. Unwritten rules are gone. 

[mqr]

At the end of the day, Tim just made himself one of the most well known marketable players in baseball. If he could keep up the play, he is going to be a very rich man.

Also, I hope he hits a no doubter in Kaufmann and makes a scene of gently placing the bat down. 

[JoshPR]

LMAO that would be awesome

[jenksycat]

It's all so incredibly stupid that I can't believe MLB hasn't fixed in the last decade.

It's not 1950.  Let guys celebrate and have some fun.  If you hate bat flips, don't throw meatballs.  Also, NEVER celebrate a big strikeout as a pitcher because it's the exact same thing.

• 30 day suspension for leaving the bench for a 'brawl'
• 30 day suspension for intentionally hitting a batter
• Done

[Balta1701]

20 minutes ago, Tony said:

Because baseball still won't let go of their "unwritten rules," that means batters are still at risk of getting hit by a 90 MPH+ projectile because they did their job well. 

There is absolutely something wrong with that. 

 

16 minutes ago, JoshPR said:

You know they're never gonna get rid of those its been around for the 100 something years the game has been played. Are they right? Are they wrong? Again its a matter of who you ask.

People may not want to call it this, but if you were annoyed with someone outside of a baseball stadium and you threw a baseball at them, you go to prison for assault. This is not exaggeration, an average person would face criminal charges for that, regardless of whether it hit them in the butt or not.

At some point, I think the legal system cleans this up.

[Dick Allen]

55 minutes ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said:

Yeah, but even Keller (who has great control) can't guarantee the ball doesn't slip and hit him in the head or hand or knee. Getting hit by a 94 MPH pitch really hurts. 

MLB has CLEARLY taken a side in this situation, and they have sided with Anderson. He is what the league is trying to promote. Check out MLB's official twitter yesterday; they literally tweet at Tim and tell him to keep being himself. This is what the game wants. Guys like Tim help promote the game. 

And they also loved Sammy Sosa blowing kisses and hopping around, but this board did not. I am pretty sure if Merrifield would have done what Anderson did, and Burr hit him on the ass his next AB, there would be a totally different take here. 

Just remember, as much as we love what Anderson did, when it happens on the other side, there is no reason to be pissed off.

[TheTruth05]

6 minutes ago, mqr said:

Suspend guys for a month when they hit someone on purpose. Done. Unwritten rules are gone. 

Really is this easy. 

[bmags]

I already want to downvote my own comment but Tim Anderson and Bryce Harper on the same team would have been fun.

[mqr]

Grichuk getting deservedly flamed