Sliding into the DL
Well here we go again! Last year the big debate was catchers getting ran over in close plays at the plate. It was all about having to slide out of the way of the catcher but still was kind off unfair for someone anyways. All this started after Buster Posey got seriously injured and lost most of the season because of a play at the plate. During previous years the catchers getting ran over had always been a topic brought up, but nothing major had been decided or no new changes to the rule had been made. Until this year where basically the runner is awarded a free path to the plate because the catcher can’t block the plate. The new rule states that the catcher can’t block home plate and the base runner is forced to slide or else he will be called out. In my opinion I don’t know how I feel about the rule. I mean obviously we need to protect our catchers but I kind off liked the blocking the plate deal because it made for some good plays at the plate and force the runner to make a good slide or the catcher to make a tough play. Also I ask myself like what would happen if there is a force out at the plate but the catcher is going for trail runner at first base? Can the runner take the catcher out with a slide or are they both going to get called out for that?
On another topic what I am trying to talk about in my blog today was the famous and old school headfirst dive. As the years pass on we see less and less of this but we still see it. We mostly see it at second or third base while stealing and by fast or good base runners, and maybe sometimes at first. The past week two of the games best players Bryce Harper and Josh Hamilton went down with broken thumbs after sliding head first into a bag. Josh Hamilton’s was broken while he dove head first at first base and Bryce Harpers was while hitting a double. So this raises the question, should players stop diving headfirst into bases? In my opinion I love when players dive headfirst I think you are soft if you don’t slide headfirst. Injuries happen someway or the other so it doesn’t matter how you slide. Like looking at Jose Reyes who last year lost most of the season with an ankle injury by sliding feet first into second base. Sliding headfirst might be more dangerous but it’s a part of the game we all love. If you don’t like sliding headfirst because of these injuries I think they should all just get those protective hand mitts that people that have been hurt before like Emilio Bonifacio and Brett Gardner use. Don’t wait until the injury happens to take care or action about it. I personally loved how Mike Trout said that he would still do it because he plays the game one way and he wont change his style. What do you guys think?