Bryan Abreu hanging Adolis Garcia with a fastball and the following benches-clearing Lone Star War would be the climax of this baseball season. Lost within the shuffle had been the Rangers not capitalizing on first and second with no person out within the backside of the eighth and ninth of Game 5. Jose Altuve’s dwelling run and the ejections took priority. And I’m stunned we virtually bought via 5 video games of the American League Championship Series with out an incident. These groups hate one another. And Abreu must be suspended tonight. Major League Baseball upholding his suspension, however deferring it to the primary two video games of the 2024 season is full cowardice. It does nothing for anybody. If the league bought it incorrect, take the ban fully away. If it didn’t, Abreu threw at a batter with intent in a crucial juncture of the season. I really can’t consider a worse method MLB may’ve handled it.
Game 6 of the ALCS completely uncovered how disconnected from the remainder of baseball the Astros and their fan base are. No matter what number of occasions a Twitter account, or an X account, regardless of the shell-of-its-former-self platform Elon Musk runs is named these days, posts “If you think that was intentional, you know nothing about baseball!!!!!” it doesn’t cease information. And Abreu will nonetheless serve a suspension, albeit a number of months later. I actually don’t know why Houston didn’t, and at present hasn’t, embraced villainizing the scenario. Without Abreu plunking Garcia, there’s doubtless not a Game 7. The Rangers already comprise one-half of the World Series. There’s no method we’ll know, however Jose Leclerc has been cash since August, and that one second is what undid him, evidenced by him getting out of a bases-loaded jam in Game 6.
What a Machiavellian transfer from both Abreu, catcher Martin Maldonado, Dusty Baker himself, or some mixture of the three. It’s evil genius, and Baker is aware of the foundations of baseball all too effectively. And how he prolonged Leclerc’s delay by sitting on the bench? He’s fortunate to have not been suspended himself. I wouldn’t be stunned if in some unspecified time in the future in Game 7 if Texas supervisor Bruce Bochy doesn’t ask the umpires to examine Astros’ starter Cristian Javier for a overseas substance, simply because the Dallas Morning News’ Evan Grant proposed. Garcia ought to’ve had a cooler head, however taking part in with that emotion is what makes him so nice. It’s not an on-off change, particularly this time of yr, so Rangers followers take the largely good with the unhealthy.
Those followers in attendance dropping their minds when Nathan Eovaldi hit Maldonado with a pitch final night time appeared extremely dumb, particularly when the replay confirmed the Astros’ catcher shifting his arm into the pitch. Guess they weren’t so animated when Ryan Stanek plunked Corey Seager. You can’t have it each methods, and saying the league is out to get the Astros? Abreu gained’t miss Game 7 or any World Series motion. Cheaters gonna cheat, and perhaps the league workplace is colluding.
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