If I were to walk into the Alligator office today, get upset at my boss and punch him square in the jaw, I’d probably be arrested. And rightfully so.
But fields and courts aren’t offices. And while there’s plenty of talk about how athletes are held to a different standard outside the game, it’s inside the game where athletes’ privilege shows most.
That was made clear on Sunday when the already infamous “brawl” between the Toronto Blue Jays and Texas Rangers broke out, culminating in — and, because this is a baseball fight, beginning with — Texas second baseman Rougned Odor knocking all-star Jose Bautista’s glasses clean off his face with a brutal right hook.
Odor was given an eight-game suspension, Bautista was given a one-game suspension and several other players involved were also given one game or a fine.
Bautista started things by trying to take out Odor’s legs on a clearly intentional hard slide at second. Odor then escalated things with the punch.
The first problem here is it doesn’t seem fair that Odor gets a suspension eight times longer than Bautista’s. Both things — sliding and punching — were clearly meant to hurt the other player. One approach to doing that was not more ethical than the other; Odor just did a seemingly better job than Bautista.
But the other problem is that no other profession tolerates this kind of crap. Forget suspension or fines — if I did this, I’d at least get fired and would likely be in prison.
But because it happened on a field — or court or rink — it’s all good. We watch it play on TV over and over again. It makes highlight reels. And on and on.
And yes, I know, I’m part of the problem with the “wussification of America,” so in anticipation of being called such, let me try and put this another way.
Suppose that in retaliation for being punched in the face, Bautista went back to the dugout, grabbed a bat and bludgeoned Odor to death in front of thousands of excited fans. Surely he’d be charged with murder.
Let’s say he did the same thing but instead of killing him, he just broke both of his legs. I’d hope he’d get charged with battery, but it starts to get hazy.
My point is when does law enforcement actually do anything?
Certainly it must if somebody were to get murdered, but is that literally the only time?
For whatever reason, Major League Baseball and all other sports leagues are pretty much allowed to police themselves. It’s as if stadiums are embassies where normal American laws don’t apply.
It also appears that specifically in baseball, the players are all — every single one — vigilantes.
Go back and watch the video of the Odor-Bautista fight and notice how every player on the field, from the benches and even from the bullpens several hundred feet away, all rush in to get involved.
But of course, only those who throw significant punches get any sort of punishment, and absolutely no one gets any legal punishment. Because it’s sports. And hurting people intentionally in sports is A-OK, even if it’s got nothing to do with the game.
Ethan Bauer is the Assistant Sports Editor. You can contact him at ebauer@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter at @ebaueri.
Toronto Blue Jays Jose Bautista (19) gets hit by Texas Rangers second baseman Rougned Odor (12) after Bautista slid into second in the eighth inning of a baseball game at Globe Life Park in Arlington, Texas, Sunday May 15, 2016. (Richard W. Rodriguez/Star-Telegram via AP)
