Cole Hamels has received a five-game suspension and an undisclosed fine from Major League Baseball for admitting that he intentionally hit Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper with a pitch Sunday night. Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reported last night that Hamels has come out and said that he will not appeal the decision, making him available to the Philadelphia Phillies again next Sunday.
With his first pitch to rookie sensation Bryce Harper, Hamels hit the 19-year-old square in the back. No one questioned whether or not Hamels intentionally hit Harper, but that’s generally all the farther a situation like this would go. Pitchers tend to beat around the bush regarding incidents such as this, and it has become tradition for someone in Hamels’s position to just say he tried to go up and in and things simply got away from him.
However, Hamels decided to take the road less traveled.
After the game Hamels was asked about the pitch and proceeded to tell reporters that he did indeed try and hit Bryce Harper. This caused quite a stir Monday morning into the afternoon.
Phillies and Nationals alike were upset by the comments, perhaps none more so than Washington’s general manager Mike Rizzo. When asked about the plunking, Rizzo said that Hamels was “classless”, “gutless”, “fake tough” and even called him “chicken s—t”.
For their part, the Phillies weren’t too happy with Hamels either. Manager Charlie Manuel was blunt as ever, saying that Hamels just needs to keep his mouth shut next time. GM Ruben Amaro Jr. used more words but said basically the same thing.
What makes this event interesting is that Hamels wouldn’t have been suspended at all if he hadn’t said that he was trying to hit Harper after the game. For this reason the player is actually being punished for what he said rather than what he did.
What does this teach pitchers? To stop hitting other players?
No, it teaches them to simply keep their mouth shut.
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