Slide rule goes too far, but the rule is the rule

Steve Phillips

TSN Baseball Insider

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On Tuesday night, the Toronto Blue Jays suffered their first loss of the season after a replay ruled that Jose Bautista had committed interference in violation of Rule 6.01 (j) (The Chase Utley Rule), trying to break up a double play at second base.  The Jays, led by manager John Gibbons and Bautista, were incensed after the game at the umpire’s decision. 

And I completely understand their frustration. 

John Gibbons was a hard-nosed player back in the day.  He appreciates that quality in his club as well.  Bautista plays hard and he wants to do what it takes to win.  Both Gibbons and Bautista are wired to go in hard and break up double plays.  That doesn’t mean that they ever want to see an opponent hurt.  The just both believe in trying to make contact with a middle infielder who is turning a double play in a fair and clean fashion.

The new rule calls demands that a baserunner do four things:

- A runner sliding into second has to make "a bona fide attempt" not just to slide into the base, but also to "remain on the base."

- Runners will not be allowed to change their "pathway to the base" in the middle of a slide to break up a double play.

- Baserunners can no longer use a "roll block" on an infielder to break up a double play. Essentially, that means they can't start their slide in midair and make contact with the infielder at or near the knee, with either a leg, arm or the body, before they've made contact with the ground.

- If a runner makes contact with the infielder illegally, both he and the batter would be called out.

- But if the runner makes contact with the infielder while attempting a "bona fide" slide, he would not be called for interference.

Bautista’s slide was not considered a bona fide slide by the umpires reviewing the play in New York. He slid before the base and didn’t change his path mid-slide.  But he didn’t remain on the base; he slid over the base and beyond it.  He did not keep his hand on the base, nor did he try to hold the base.  He actually reached across his body to slide his arm along the ground to initiate contact with Rays’ second baseman, Logan Forsythe.  Hence, the violation of the rule. 

Now Gibbons’ frustration isn’t that the umpires enforced the rule.  It’s that there’s even a rule at all. What has happened to hard-nosed baseball?  Sure, Gibby could have phrased his complaint differently, but the emotion was understood. There was no part of Bautista’s slide that put Forsythe in jeopardy, yet it was deemed a violation of a rule in place to keep players from getting hurt. 

Bautista’s frustration comes from the fact that he could have made a different choice with his slide that could have jeopardized Forsythe’s health and that slide could have been considered legal.  If Bautista had chosen to slide on the infield side of second base, he could have wiped out Forsythe’s legs and potentially broken his leg or torn up his knee.  He didn’t do that because he wanted to be clean.  He tried to honor the rule.

And in doing so, he set himself up to violate it. 

I am all for doing away with slides that are flagrant and risk serious injury to middle infielders. But this rule goes too far.

That being said, the rule is the rule. 

My biggest complaint is the lack of understanding of how the rule will be enforced.  There seems to be a disconnect between the umpires and the players/managers.  This feels just as frustrating as the home plate collision rule (the Buster Posey Rule) has been over the past couple of years. It has taken about 20 different home plate situations to arrive at some universal understanding about the rule.  Why does that have to be the case for the slide rule?

If I were in charge, I would have put together a video with a hundred slides into second base on double plays from previous seasons.  Then I would have umpires and players together in a room and teach them what’s acceptable and what isn’t.  It sure seems we’re headed down the same road as the collision rule, where it will take 20 in-game arguments and disappointments to figure it out. 

Seattle's Slugger

Every team wants to keep their middle infielders healthy, but the Seattle Mariners may argue that they need to keep their second baseman, Robinson Cano, on the field more than any other team.  Cano is off to an amazing start to the season. He’s hammered four homers in three games and has driven in seven runs.  He looks like the player the Mariners thought they were getting when they gave him the 10-year, $240 million contract a few years back. 

A year ago, there were rumblings of frustration about Cano.  He didn’t hit his fourth home run in 2015 until the 74th game of the season.  There were questions about his desire and his commitment.  Some questioned his physical conditioning.  As the season progressed, we learned that Cano was dealing a stomach ailment and was suffering some level of depression due to a loss in his family. He looked gaunt and tired for the first three months of the season.  The Mariners second baseman hit .251/.290/.370 with six homers and 30 RBI before the All-Star break.  After the break, he hit .331/.387/.540 with 15 homers and 49 RBI. 

And the marked improvement in the second half was due to feeling better physically and the hiring of Edgar Martinez as the hitting coach. 

Cano then underwent surgery in the offseason for an abdominal core muscle injury.  He rehabbed all winter and is in the best shape of his life.  He looks as good as he ever has. 

Now the Mariners were already one of my sleepers, but I have to admit that I’m more enthused now than I was before.  Cano’s presence is already helping the guys around him in the lineup.  That should sustain his performance and elevate the rest of the lineup.  Keep an eye on the Mariners. 

In the Cards

If it wasn’t for bad luck, the St. Louis Cardinals wouldn’t have any luck at all.  I sure wouldn’t blame the Cardinals organization for wondering what they did to anger the baseball gods.  They’re already in a very tough division with the Pirates and everyone’s darling the Cubs.

St. Louis lost Lance Lynn to Tommy John surgery in the offseason and lefty Marco Gonzalez is headed to the MRI tube with his ailing elbow this week. Shortstop Johnny Peralta recently had thumb surgery. And they’ve already lost reliever Jordan Walden (shoulder strain), infielder Ruben Tejada (quadriceps strain), catcher Brayan Pena (left knee surgery) and outfielder Tommy Pham (left oblique strain) to injuries.  Other than that, they are feeling great.

Nobody is feeling sorry for the Cardinals, as they have been perennial winners in the NL Central.  Manager Mike Matheny says he isn’t worried about the injuries. 

And why would he worry?  Been there, done that. 

Remember that last year, the Cards won 100 games despite the following injuries:

The Cardinals have a next-man-up mentality. They’re the best organization in the game at having minor league players ready to step in and replace injured major league players.  Their young guys are always prepared and make amazingly seamless transitions.

So when the decision makers don’t overreact to injuries, then neither do the players.  The Cardinals will be just fine, thank you.  As soon as you count them out, they’ll beat you.

Some other random thoughts:

Lost in all of the hoopla of Jose Bautista and ‘Slide-gate’ was the outstanding pitching performance of Aaron Sanchez.  He was dominating.

Five of his eight strikeouts were called third strikes. 

They all came on his fastball, which tells me that his secondary pitches were phenomenal. Hitters got caught looking for his breaking stuff and he froze them with his heater. 

And I hope Jays fans come to appreciate how amazing Troy Tulowitzki is defensively.  He makes very difficult plays look easy.  He has excellent range and he can throw accurately from any angle.  By the way he has the best fielding percentage ever for a shortstop.  

Rookie shortstop Trevor Story has been the story for the Colorado Rockies, as he’s homered in the first three games of his major league career and is the first player in the history of the game to do so. That said, former Jay Jose Reyes will make for an expensive role player when he’s back on the active roster.

The Dodgers may not be as bad as I originally thought, and the Padres may be worse.  The Dodgers outscored the Padres 25-0 in the three game sweep of their series.  Dodgers pitchers held the Padres hitters to 11 hits.  Yikes!

Astros shortstop Carlos Correa reminds me of a young Alex Rodriguez. Houston lost to the Yankees 16-6 and Correa was by far the best player on the field.  It’s not often you can say that in a blowout game. He was 4-for-5 with two homers in the game and can do it all.

If I were Tigers’ DH Victor Martinez, I would retire immediately. Detroit started their season in Miami taking on the Marlins in interleague play, which means that Martinez would have to come off the bench.  He has pinch hit twice and homered in both at bats. That’s a walk-off in my book. The same can be said for Dodgers starter Kenta Maeda, who threw six scoreless innings and hit a homer in his first major league start. It can only go downhill from here.

And  why exactly is Red Sox DH David Ortiz retiring?  He’s homered in each of the first two games.  I actually think he is going to be so good this year that he may have to reconsider.  I won’t hold it against him if he changes his mind.