In his last start, New York Yankees pitcher Masahiro Tanaka appeared to storm off the mound and avoid his manager. Is this is an issue, or an overblown misunderstanding?
New York Yankees pitcher Masahiro Tanaka had one of his worst outings of the season Tuesday night against the Mets. Tanaka gave up seven runs on eight hits through six and a third innings. What made the performance even more noteworthy was Tanaka’s reaction to manager Joe Girardi taking him out of the game.
When Girardi went out to make the switch, Tanaka had walked off the mound toward the dugout instead of waiting for his manager. Short of an injury, rarely does a pitcher ever leave the mound before his manager meets him there and removes him from the game. Tanaka and Girardi met somewhere between the mound and dugout in no man’s land and had an awkward exchange.
Girardi took the ball from Tanaka while passing him without looking at him. The whole exchange and situation was bizarre and a bit awkward. The story has gained a lot of interest from baseball fans and speculation as to whether Tanaka was trying to show up his manager.
When asked about the situation, Tanaka shrugged it off:
"“There was a double-switch and I saw the next pitcher coming out. I walked toward Joe and gave him the ball. There were no bad intentions.”"
It is an unwritten rule in baseball that you wait for your manager to take the ball on the mound no matter the game situation. Masahiro Tanaka broke an unwritten rule out of frustration. Tanaka has little reason to want to show up his manager. If he wanted to do so he would not try to show him up in a game where he had done little to help his team.
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Masahiro Tanaka is a competitive player that let his frustration and the confusion of the double switch result in an awkward exchange. He had a forgettable night on the mound and was ready to put the night behind him. Maybe he made a mistake and broke one of baseball’s endless unwritten rules, but he did so with no ill intent for Girardi or anyone else. Tanaka’s next scheduled start is Sunday against the Cleveland Indians.