Check Out This Hit

[Tibs]

Minor League Catcher Brandon Douglas Gets Drilled At Home Plate By Runner - YouTube

 

 

The runner went to the same high school as me. He always had the biggest hits on the football field.

 

Oh and Brandon Douglas is the baserunner, not the catcher.

[jm3319]

So both the runner and the catcher walk (crawl?) away with head injuries over one run in one game. I'd be curious to see if either player would say it was worth it afterwards. Call me soft, but I guess I don't get why this is allowed in the game anymore.

[Tibs]

Apparently the catcher was still in the hospital undergoing tests today. I don't have any problem with it. If the catcher is standing in front of the plate, you have to try to score somehow. Knowing this guy, he would most likely say it was worth it.

[Seth Stohs]

So both the runner and the catcher walk (crawl?) away with head injuries over one run in one game. I'd be curious to see if either player would say it was worth it afterwards. Call me soft, but I guess I don't get why this is allowed in the game anymore.

 

I completely agree.

[TheLeviathan]

The problem with plays like this is that they go from being aggressive to violent. And my opposition to that is that too many of these violent hits will cause the league to basically outlaw aggressive baserunning to stem the violent collisions.

 

It wasn't necessary to head hunt there, you could've been aggressive without this degree of violence.

[biggentleben]

It wasn't necessarily to head hunt there, you could've been aggressive without this degree of violence.

 

Exactly this. I cannot stand the way collisions have been vilified, but it's a play like this that gives ammunition to anyone against collisions. You can drop a shoulder at the ball with the same effect, don't go for the head. It's akin to football in that so many went for the highlight hit that good fundamentals went away and the only way to reel things back in was over-regulation. That's absolutely coming to baseball with plays like this as fundamental plays for the purpose of scoring a run go out the window for a "big hit" that makes a highlight reel.

[Physics Guy]

Anybody else think he's safe if he slide to the back side of the base? It looked to me like the throw was going to be late. Pointless.

[jm3319]

Apparently the catcher was still in the hospital undergoing tests today. I don't have any problem with it. If the catcher is standing in front of the plate, you have to try to score somehow. Knowing this guy, he would most likely say it was worth it.

 

Except that he wasn't really in front of the plate....The runner probably could have slid and been safe, or thrown a shoulder into the catcher's chest, not dive at his head. As the other posters have said, there's no need for this degree of violence on a play like that. Two careers were at stake over a pointless play.

[notoriousgod71]

Good play. I love the all out effort and have no issue in him knocking the catcher out.

[Alex]

Good play. I love the all out effort and have no issue in him knocking the catcher out.

 

I hope you're joking.

[notoriousgod71]

I hope you're joking.

 

Not at all.

[Alex]

Not at all.

 

Sad. I mean, it's not really either players' fault here but the fact that this play is still acceptable is a problem. When "all out effort" can mean not only a game injury but a life altering one to another player, that's a problem.

 

I really don't understand why this play is acceptable on any level, it's not like catchers have appropriate protection for 170-190lb+ bodies with 90ft of momentum. This would be a rare play for most players in the NFL (standing still while the other player has that much built up momentum) and they have far more protection.

[deanlambrecht]

Sad. I mean, it's not really either players' fault here but the fact that this play is still acceptable is a problem. When "all out effort" can mean not only a game injury but a life altering one to another player, that's a problem.

 

I really don't understand why this play is acceptable on any level, it's not like catchers have appropriate protection for 170-190lb+ bodies with 90ft of momentum. This would be a rare play for most players in the NFL (standing still while the other player has that much built up momentum) and they have far more protection.

 

Bingo. There's a fair catch rule in football for this very reason. An artful slide is what's called for here. If the catcher blocks the plate, that's interference, and there's a rule for that. We can change that rule, and other associated rules. But we can't change a life-altering head injury (whether one happened here is beside the point - it's a matter of time).

 

Here's how a professional - and one who's more than capable of crushing the catcher but understands the potential consequences - gets the job done: Justin Morneau Scores on Amazing Slide at Home Plate Around Angels Catcher (GIF) | MLB | NESN.com

 

It's baseball, not football.

[powrwrap]

Anybody else think he's safe if he slide to the back side of the base? It looked to me like the throw was going to be late. Pointless.

 

Yep. Easy score on a conventional slide. Catcher is not standing in the base line. He's got one foot at/near the plate and is standing off to the side. The runner simply wanted to put a hit on the catcher. Totally bush league.

[Tibs]

Yep. Easy score on a conventional slide. Catcher is not standing in the base line. He's got one foot at/near the plate and is standing off to the side. The runner simply wanted to put a hit on the catcher. Totally bush league.

 

If he thought he could slide to avoid the tag instead of running into the catcher and still score, he would have. This guy isn't that type of player and he's not out to hurt someone. He plays hard and he did what he needed to do to score in a playoff game.

 

Baseball doesn't need to take these plays out of the game. They don't happen very often, and you can't allow the catcher to just stand in front of the plate to prevent a runner from scoring.

[biggentleben]

If he thought he could slide to avoid the tag instead of running into the catcher and still score, he would have. This guy isn't that type of player and he's not out to hurt someone. He plays hard and he did what he needed to do to score in a playoff game.

 

Baseball doesn't need to take these plays out of the game. They don't happen very often, and you can't allow the catcher to just stand in front of the plate to prevent a runner from scoring.

 

What baseball "needs" is to teach fundamentals. The runner absolutely had poor fundamentals in that there was an obvious slide and obvious alternative way to dislodge the ball seen by the naked eye of many here. He may have been playing hard, but he was also playing without control in that he could have done multiple things less harmful to the catcher. I played college football, and in the moment of a move like that, it should absolutely go through your head the best way to make an effective block/hit where you can pick yourself and the opponent up at the end of the play and come back for another shot.

[powrwrap]

Baseball doesn't need to take these plays out of the game. They don't happen very often, and you can't allow the catcher to just stand in front of the plate to prevent a runner from scoring.

 

You need to learn the rules. The catcher has every right to stand in front of the plate or even in the baseline so long as the ball is in the air en route to him or he is in possession of the ball. The thing is the catcher is correctly positioned--one foot just off the plate on the third base side of the plate and standing in front of the plate. The catcher is giving the runner access to a (large) part of the plate. The runner simply decided to deck the catcher.

[ashbury]

Here's how a professional - and one who's more than capable of crushing the catcher but understands the potential consequences - gets the job done: Justin Morneau Scores on Amazing Slide at Home Plate Around Angels Catcher (GIF) | MLB | NESN.com

 

Very different play - the catcher is positioned a little further up the line, the ball is there in time, they've seemingly got the runner dead to rights - but of course that only makes your point stronger.