Let’s talk about the code. He’s all the rage in baseball.
I chatted about it with my colleague Antoine Desrosiers at the end of the week in a block of the Passion MLB show.
Young baseball players are changing the way they play baseball and there are two ways of looking at it: either we are against it or we are for it.
But since life is not black or white and it is sometimes gray, let’s add some nuance.
When Yermin Mercedes hits a home run in any context, I don’t have a problem.
When Fernando Tatis Jr. celebrates a homerun in a game where he hit the 200 career hitting mark, I don’t have a problem. Why? Because he has achieved something.
The problem I have is found through the lack of effort or when a player does not do everything to win. When Ronald Acuna Jr. tried to cripple himself by hitting his wrong side, I swallowed my glass of water through the mouth. Force yourself, please.
When Juan Soto didn’t run for a ball in the infield, I didn’t like it. I found it embarrassing.
I love it, the kid. He is, without a doubt, one of the best players in MLB. But that shouldn’t stop him from doing his job and running.
Yesterday he hit the ball in front of the catcher, didn’t run and was eventually called out on a base play.
Result? Rightly, his manager didn’t like what he saw. So he forced his young player to apologize in front of his teammates.
It’s embarrassing for the whole club.
– Dave Martinez
When Derek Jeter saw the Yankees pull off his legendary # 2, he said a catchphrase to me. He thanked fans for holding him accountable for his actions. That’s wonderful.
That’s what a youngster like Soto has to learn. Even though the Washington club won yesterday, he must be accountable for his actions on the pitch.
Hopefully this was the last time we saw a gesture like this from him.
- Alternate Hitter and Outfielder: Shohei Ohtani had a great day off yesterday.
- Finally a victorious hit for Aaron Judge.
