Bean Bean, the Magical Pitch

It's been the biggest thing in baseball for as long as I can remember. Pitch comes high and tight, the opposing pitcher comes in high and tight. It's the biggest testosterone show in any major sporting event.

My example comes from the August 4th Dodger/Brewer game in which Guillermo Mota plunked Prince Fielder in the meat of the thigh in a 17-4 game. I'll repeat that, a 17-4 game. Why? There's 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th and you have an insurmountable lead! Every L.A. writer and their grandmother will hide behind the "protect our batters" line. Let me tell you, when I think of the best batter on the Dodgers, I don't think of Man-Ram, I haven't thought of the cheater as the premier batter in L.A. ever. I think of Matt Kemp, I think of Andre Ethier, the guys that kept the Dodgers floating when Man-Ram decided that he needed steroids in order to become a big hitter. The point I'm making is that Man-Ram is indefinitely the biggest face on the dodgers, he's got the biggest mouth, the biggest ego, and when he talks, it's not coherent.

Fact: Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier were more productive in the Brewer slaughter. Matt Kemp had 5 RBIs and including a homer and a double. Seems like a better target.

But let's talk about the shot on Manny Ramirez, should I say the acting job. It grazed his jersey, yes that is technically a hit batsmen, but it happens in nearly every game. That high inside pitch that backs a player up so the pitcher can have the outside half of the plate. It's a pitching technique, it had no intent of hitting Manny, Smith just wanted him to back off.

But here comes Mota and what does he do? Drills Fielder with a mid 90's fastball. Give me a break. When you win by 10+ runs, the brewers' pitchers needed some protection.

Moral of the story: Leave with pride, you destroyed your opposition, there was no need for Mota's patented beanball (Maybe that can be a pitch selection in future MLB: The show games?)