The Speaking the Unspoken Rules Debate – Ozzie is Out of Line

Read the debate intro, Sports Geek’s argument that it is okay to speak about the unspoken rules, and Bleacher Fan’s argument to keep the unspoken rules unspoken.

I guess it is time for me to speak about the unspoken rules of baseball, right?

Ozzie Guillen is a respected (in some circles) baseball man. He played from 1985-2000, and has been a manager for the White Sox since 2003. He even won a World Series as a skipper in 2005, so I guess that lends him some credibility when he speaks up. But, we cannot forget how many times he shoots his mouth off. If you have forgotten, the first person you might want to call is writer Jay Mariotti after their little run-in.

Gulllen has threatened to hit TWO batters the next time he feels one of his players is hit intentionally. There lies the body of this debate. I am just going to cut right to the chase and say that I am declaring Bleacher Fan the winner! Here’s why.

Bleacher Fan argued that Guillen often has “diarrhea of the mouth” and that these most recent statements may backfire on his team while Sports Geek argued that this is a new era in baseball and he commended Guillen for sticking up for his players and being honest.

In one sense, I commend Guillen for the same thing. In the past, he has not taken up for his players in public. This time he seems to have their backs. While his intentions may be honorable, he is doing more harm than good this time. He is indirectly putting pressure on his pitching staff, as if the staff needs more in the midst of a pennant race. In theory, if fans accept what Ozzie is saying, here is what could happen. Detroit Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander could come inside and hit White Sox first baseman Paul Konerko. If Guillen thinks it is intentional, he is going to immediately tell his pitcher Mark Buerhle, “Hey Buerhle, come inside and hit both Miggy Cabrera and Curtis Granderson in the ribs.” After that it will turn into a brawl and players from both teams get ejected and suspended. Personally, I would love to see this on Sportscenter, as I love watching baseball brawls. But, this would not be in the best interest of the team.
Without the threat from Guillen, if Verlander hits Konerko, Guillen may Buerhle to hit Cabrera. Warnings would have been issued, and then everyone would move on. That is part of the game. But, Guillen and the White Sox have already received their warning now. Major League Baseball VP of Discipline, Bob Watson, issued a warning yesterday.

I’m sure your pitching staff thanks you, Ozzie! I’m sure the Detroit Tigers thank you, Ozzie! And, Bleacher Fan thanks you, Ozzie! You would be better off just letting this play out and not airing it out in public. Be honest… behind closed doors!!!

The Speaking the Unspoken Rules Debate – Silence is Golden!

Read the debate intro and Sports Geek’s argument that it is okay to speak about the unspoken rules.

You always know where you stand with Chicago White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen.

Never one to keep his thoughts to himself, Guillen is all too happy to tell you exactly what he thinks, and why. Sometimes, that can be a good thing. More often than not it is very bad.

MOST people are born with a mental filter. This filter serves to keep all those bad things that we think about inside our head. Just as an inappropriate, mean, or otherwise unnecessary comment enters our mind, the filter catches it and prevents us from actually verbalizing it. If it wasn’t for that filter, we would all walk around saying exactly what we thought every day, and everyone would hate each other.

Some people seem to be born without that filter, and I would venture to say that Guillen is one of those people.

Once again, Guillen has come down with a nasty bout of ‘diarrhea of the mouth’ and should think about sticking his foot in there quickly to stop the flow before it gets him AND his team into some real trouble! Following a series against the Cleveland Indians last weekend where several White Sox batters were hit by pitches, Guillen publicly vowed retaliation for any similar incidents that may occur in the future.

Everyone knows that there are unspoken rules in baseball. For example:

• Don’t steal a base if you are far ahead late in a game
• Don’t bunt to prevent a no-hitter
• If you physically endanger a player, be prepared for retaliation

I have no problem with any of those unspoken rules, which all exist to ensure the good sportsmanship of the game. In fact, I like them. They establish a code among all who play the game that certain lines should not be crossed, and if they are, there will be consequences. It is a matter of honor and respect which protect the integrity of America’s pastime.

But, what is honorable and respectful about blatantly threatening the other players in the league? Publicly voicing his intention to enforce one of those unwritten rules is a bad idea for many reasons, not the least of which is the obvious criminal implication from threatening to knowingly and maliciously endanger the safety of another player. His statement distorts the true intention behind those unwritten rules, turning a potentially justifiable act of retaliation as self-defense into an act of premeditated assault.

I do not doubt Guillen’s intention of protecting his players, who I am sure are very happy to know that he is willing to ‘fall on the sword’ for them. But when he declares that he would rather be “suspended for two games than have (his) players on the DL for 30 days” he only justifies the problem which he is trying to avoid.

Instead of worrying about the safety of all players in the game (which is the REAL intention behind these unspoken rules), he has threatened to endanger TWO more players in the league for everyone that he feels threatened. More, he is placing the safety of those two unnamed hitters solely at the mercy of his (very subjective) opinion, and he is announcing it to the league. That kind of “untouchables” mentality only serves to further escalate the problem, not quell it. Guillen is essentially antagonizing the rest of the league before an incident even begins. Now, opposing managers are going to EXPECT their players to get hit (even if they unintentionally hit a White Sox batter), so they are already planning THEIR retaliation.

Considering the fact that Guillen has made that statement, let’s hypothetically consider the next time that a White Sox batter is hit by a pitch. Guillen has two choices, and neither of them are positive options. The first is to follow through on his threat. Guillen can order his pitcher(s) to throw at not one, but TWO hitters on the other team. This would result in the potential injury of MORE players, a suspension for himself, his pitcher(s), and could lead to a fight that might cause further injury. The second option would be to not retaliate at all. The risk then is that he will lose credibility among his team and the fans for failing to act when his bluff was called. Either way, Guillen loses.

If a manager or player wants his team to know he has their back, then he should tell them IN THE LOCKER ROOM. If he wants to risk suspension by giving the okay for his pitchers to plunk an opposing batter, he gets no argument from me. By publicly declaring a complete disregard for the WRITTEN and spoken rules of the game, in combination with a disregard for the safety of the OTHER players in the league, Guillen has only served to bring increased scrutiny and danger upon his players, whom he allegedly wishes to protect.

The Speaking the Unspoken Rules Debate – Baseball Needs More Honesty, Less Secrets

Read the debate intro and Bleacher Fan’s argument to keep the unspoken rules unspoken.

Welcome, baseball, to the Internet Age – the age of information. Every google search result turns up a “sports insider” or “team insider” result. No information is sacred or secret anymore. Information will be leaked (just ask Bud Selig’s President in charge of the Steroids List). The lesson? Baseball can avoid embarrassment by being honest.

No one in baseball is more honest than White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen. That is mainly because the filter between his brain and his mouth is broken… and that is perfectly okay with me. Ozzie Guillen adds the honesty the sports landscape that fans have not seen in eons. Honesty is good, no great, for fans. I know that because anytime baseball is considering a fine for someone simply for being honest, the fan probably wins.

Guillen speaks the truth – a truth that is blasted to the world thanks to the Internet Age – and he is willing to stand up for his players, too. That is a good thing for his team, and a good thing for baseball. The fact that he is speaking an unspoken rule when defending his players just proves how ridiculous unspoken rules are.

Here is the main reason why it is perfectly okay to speak the unspoken rules of baseball – it is insulting not to. Every baseball fan in the world knows when a New York Yankee plunks a member of the Red Sox, David Ortiz, Kevin Youkilis, or Dustin Pedroia better strap in because they are about to be hit. And now the league knows that about White Sox players, too, because Guillen said it. Good for him.

Also, baseball is not the Central Intelligence Agency, where a spook will retire then pen a book about all of the things they were unable to talk about when they were on the job. It is just baseball. No high-minded gentlemanliness is here to protect anyone. No one is doing the right thing by not blowing the whistle. If a manager wants to call out a player for intentionally throwing at one of his players, or a pitcher for having a weird smudge on their hand, they should do that. Speaking the unspoken rules of baseball enhances the fairness of the game and eliminates the secrets that keep fans frustratingly in the dark.

We need to understand, too, that not all of the unspoken rules of baseball are controversial. It is an “unspoken rule” not to out the tying run on base, or go against percentages when building the lineup or deciding a pinch hitter, or no to make the power hitter bunt, or not mention a no hitter while it is in progress. There are a bunch of these unspoken rules, and they are all good… if not a little antiquated.

All of the supposedly unspoken rules of baseball have a common link – common sense. If they are logical rules, why not talk about them? Some of them are unspoken because they are obvious. For the ones that are not obvious (but should be) I am glad baseball has people like Ozzie Guillen to shine light on issues that need to be spoken about so fans do not have to have their intelligence insulted. If baseball is implementing instant replay to keep the game more fair, why not use simple honesty to achieve the same end? Calling out a player with sandpaper in their glove, or a razor blade in their mitt (ahem, Don Sutton, ahem), the game is improved. Honesty is good for the fans, and so are honesty people like Ozzie Guillen. Baseball could use a few more like him.

The Speaking the Unspoken Rules Debate – The Speaking of Unspoken Rules

Read Sports Geek’s argument that it is ok to come out and speak about the unspoken rules and Bleacher Fan’s argument that players and coaches should not speak the unspoken rules of their sport

The city of Chicago is fortunate enough to have two teams in wild card chases (with the Cubs also being in a division race.) Entering play on Wednesday, the Cubs are three games behind the Cardinals in the National League Central and three games behind the Rockies in the wild card race. Meanwhile, the boys from the South side enter play Wednesday trailing the Detroit Tigers by two games in the American League Central. It is going to be wild!

Something else has happened involving the White Sox, though.

White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen, perhaps feeling the pressure of the pennant race, spoke out in frustration last week. This is something he rarely does (just a hint of sarcasm here). The White Sox have been getting drilled in all parts of the body over the past month by blazing fastballs from the opposing teams. Guillen has had enough, and he is going to do something about it. He has issued a warning to every team the White Sox play from here on out.

“If I see someone hit my player, and I know they hit him on purpose, it’s two guys going down. I don’t care if I get suspended,” Guillen said. “I rather have me suspended for two games than have my players on the DL for 30 days.”

Now, it is common for a team to plunk a batter at some point after their player has been drilled. It is just part of the game and most people, sans Kevin Youkilis, accept it. I know, as a fan, if one of the players on the team I am rooting for gets drilled, I want someone on the other team to get hit also. Not headhunting or anything, but maybe right in the back. After that, all is forgotten and everyone moves along.

But Ozzie “The Non-Wizard” Guillen has upped the ante. On one end of the spectrum, he has really sent a message to his team that he has their back and that the constant beaning of the White Sox has got to stop. On the other hand, he has really put his entire pitching staff under a microscope and put them under a lot of pressure. If Mark Buerhle comes inside on Miguel Cabrera and unintentionally hits him, the home plate umpire, knowing Guillen’s comments, could toss Buerhle out of the game.

Sounds like a debate to me.

Is it wise to speak the unspoken rules of baseball?

Sports Geek will argue that it is ok to speak the “unspoken” rules while Bleacher Fan will argue that it is not something that a player or coach should do!

Game on! The loser either gets thrown out of the game or gets beaned by a Loyal Homer fastball (and we all know that’s a real heater!)!

The Publish the Steroids List Debate – End the Rumors… Release It!

Read the debate intro and Bleacher Fan’s argument to keep the list from the public.

Allow me to take a trip down memory lane.

December 12, 2007.

It’s the day before Major League Baseball is set to release the Mitchell Report. Loyal Homer is debating with friends on some names that may, or may not, be in the report. It leads to quite an interesting discussion.

Fast forward to one day later. The report is released by former U.S. Senator George Mitchell. I remember discussing the names on this list with those same friends. Some were not surprising at all. Some were surprising. And, we were quite surprised that some names were not on the list.

It was all speculation.

Now, rotoinfo.com has their hands on the supposed list of 103 players who testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs in random screenings in 2003. This has been a highly secretive list up to this point, with the occasional name being leaked out. It has led to much speculation by the media and by the public.

I have had numerous conversations about who I think is, or is not, on that list. They are quite similar to the conversations I had prior to the releasing of the Mitchell Report.

There’s one way to end all of this speculation and avoid the court of public opinion convicting innocent ballplayers – just release the darn list.

In fact, the Chicago baseball managers Ozzie Guillen and Lou Piniella even agree with me.

One by one, these names are going to somehow be leaked. Bud Selig’s wish to have the steroid era put in the past is never going to happen as it stands now, because every time it seems like the story has gotten old, another name leaks out. This could go on for years! Did someone say closure? HA! That isn’t going to happen with a constant leaking of names! Not to mention having websites like rotoinfo.com release their lists where accuracy is only “90% certain.” Whether or not they are completely accurate isn’t the point. It just continues to put a really dark black eye on baseball.

Why not just bite the bullet and release the list? Yes, I’m aware these tests were confidential back in 2003 and “cannot be released” per the most recent collective bargaining agreement. But, let me ask the players this:

“Guys, if your name is on this list, it’s getting out. It may not be today. It may not be tomorrow. But, it’s coming. Why not go ahead and have it released so you can share in the spotlight with 102 of your buddies? Wouldn’t you rather have MLB release the list than a fantasy sports website?”

Yes, the game would suffer in the short term, but it would benefit in the long run. It is best to go ahead and deal with the consequences from the public now, instead of having this issue linger over the rest of some of these players careers.

To the fans… you know you are curious to see this list! Don’t lie! You want to be able to tell your buddies that you knew that _______ was on the list!!!

End the speculation! Release the list! The truth shall set you free… well, sort of!