Simmer Down Time

I considered writing this Thursday night after the kerfuffle on the mound and after seeing a sneak preview of 42, the movie about Jackie Robinson, but realized I didn't want to be like Carlos Quentin and just go ballistic. or at the very least, I didn't want to sit and pout (I believe this was the episode where Ricky and Fred were waiting for the girls to come home when they thought they had dates).

Figured it better to simmer down a bit before writing. Now that more than 24 hours have passed, I can calmly reaffirm what Dodger Manager Don Mattingly said: "That was just stupid." (Remember when Lucy lit her nose on fire? Legend has it that wasn't planned but rather an accident...but she went with it, the brilliant actress she was.)


Hmmm,...what else was an accident...AH YES. That pitch that hit Quentin, the same pitch he seems to lean into.... But does Quentin accept responsibility for being accident prone perhaps?
Of course, "stupid," is an understatement. Mattingly was being kind in my book. But thta was the most peeved I have ever seen the guy. For anyone who missed the party, here it is in a nutshell: our pitcher, Greinke, hit a Padres batter, Quentin (last names only please). Quentin charged the mound, Greinke has a broken collar bone and is out for two months. Quentin got an 8 game suspension. REALLY??? (Gotta admit I have no idea what Carrie Bradshaw is thinking here, but this was the look on MY face when I heard only 8 games to be suspended for.)

Furthermore, after that brawl calmed down (a bit), our back up utility man, Hairston, came charging out AGAIN towards the Padres dugout. According to Hairston, one of the Padres players was laughing at our pitcher's sustained injury. Now, you've heard me talk about age-old rivalries before.... and Dodger fans have long memories. I am thinking we have just seen ushered in a new era of major rivalry. Look, Quentin has made a career of being one of the most hit batters by pitches. He claimed there was a history between him and Greinke, that Greinke has hit him several times before and that all this could have been avoided. Yes, it could have been avoided IF Quentin had acted like a civilized human being instead of like Captain Caveman-

AND like most other batters who ACCIDENTALLY get hit by a pitch and simply take first base. Plus there was no way Greinke was aiming to hit Quentin. The count was 3-2 and the Dodgers were leading by a run. Sixth inning. Quentin saying Greinke has hit him before is an argument with no weight: pretty much all pitchers have hit Quentin. HE'S one of the most HIT BATTERS! Our guy is out for two months, Quentin is suspended for eight games. Not sure how that's fair, but for the first time ever I would urge a player to press charges...THAT looked like outright intentional assault to me. I'm allowed to have an opinion. And frankly, normally I would want the courts to stay off the field, but in this case I say: Dear Greinke, Please press charges against Quentin. Obviously MLB isn't taking this seriously. Maybe they would IF the courts were brought into it. Get well soon. Hugs, Kimberly 
I also read that a few people thought they had the perfect Monday quarterback solution to the "shoulda-coulda-woulda" overhang: If our catcher had intervened maybe our pitcher would not have been hurt. NEW GIRLS: Anyone who claims this as a viable hindsight solution has NO idea about the game...DO NOT listen to them, and furthermore do not engage in pointless rhetoric. I feel very strongly about this: you simply cannot fix stupid. (Me sputtering) " If our catcher had intervened maybe our pitcher would not have been hurt..." Yeah... THAT woulda magically stopped the brawl and NO ONE woulda gotten hurt and then Quentin would been restrained by a catcher wearing all that gear... and of course our catcher IS a mind reader and shame on him for not predicting that Quentin was gonna go ape...yeah,.... not sure I follow. 
OH. My. Word. 
Again, ANYONE who suggests this as a should-have-happened-preventative does not understand the game nor do they understand common sense. Feel sorry for them, but don't engage. As the song would suggest, these boots...

Just walk away. Like Quentin should have.
Just like 8 games won't fix Quentin, engaging in conversation with "stupid" will only encourage additional thinking on their part. And that's no bueno for anyone. Ugh. Catchers are wearing tons of gear. Hard to move quickly. If the catcher attempts to stand between the guy about to charge the mound: 1. he would have to be a mind reader and see it coming every time 2. the catcher is not a mind reader. His job is to play ball, not act as referee. 3. he gets pummeled too, thus clearing the benches and someone gets hurt anyway... so I'm not sure I follow. (Maybe those people like  displacing blame and they're accustomed to following special brick roads to a land that doesn't exist? In special red heels that will magically make everything better?)

Ok, enough of that. The movie 42 was inspirational and honest. It was a little two dimensional in my opinion as it does not go into Robinson's family life growing up or the loss of his brother. But it remains true to the era and tells the story. By the way, Harrison Ford as Branch Rickey was phenomenal.
Just... WOW.
We lost last night to the Diamondbacks. Grrr.. Game starts at 5:10 PM tonight. GO Blue!