It grabbed all the headlines last week. It sparked the age-old debate over whether or not “unwritten rules” still have a place in baseball.
The White Sox had a 15-4 lead over the Twins in their series opener last week. Yermin Mercedes, who has been on a tear of late after spending ten years in the minor leagues, was at the plate. The Twins had seemingly given up on the game, as evidenced by the fact that infielder Willians Astudillo was pitching. Astudillo hung a 3-0 pitch to the White Sox slugger, who connected for his sixth home run of the 2021 season.
It was later discovered that Mercedes had been given the take sign by third-base coach Joe McEwing. Mercedes ignored the sign, which drew manager Tony La Russa’s ire.
“He made a mistake. So there’ll be a consequence that he has to endure here within our family,” La Russa said, repeatedly stating that it was not the right time to swing on 3-0 and maintaining that it was about sportsmanship and “respect of the game.”
The Twins also took exception to Mercedes’ actions, as pitcher Tyler Duffey threw behind him the following game. But to make matters worse, La Russa threw his own player under the bus.
“I don’t have a problem with how the Twins handled that,” La Russa said.
Starting pitcher, Lance Lynn was one of many White Sox teammates to stand up for Mercedes.
“Let’s get the damn game over with,” said Lynn. “ And if you have a problem with whatever happens, then put a pitcher out there. Can’t get mad when there’s a position player on the field and a guy takes a swing.”
The drama continued far beyond Lynn’s comments, but it ignited the debate over “unwritten rules” for the second time in as many years.
Last year, Padres shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. hit a grand slam on a 3-0 pitch against the Rangers Juan Nicasio. Rangers manager Chris Woodward took exception to it, citing that it was a bad time for Tatis to swing 3-0 due to San Diego having a seven-run lead prior to the home run.
As time goes on, the less important these so-called norms become. Tony La Russa is an old-school guy, and there’s nothing wrong with that, but the game is changing, and La Russa needs to understand that. Even Woodward has since changed his stance on the issue of swinging 3-0.
People around the league, announcers, managers, coaches, and players alike, have defended Mercedes, including McEwing, the coach who gave the take sign. The honest truth is that if La Russa had such a problem with Mercedes swinging on 3-0, he should have just pulled him aside and had a private conversation about what had transpired. There was no need to make it public the way he did, and there was certainly no need for him to not defend his own player when he was thrown at the next night.
Mercedes has nothing to apologize for. Even if he missed the sign, whether disrespectful or not, La Russa could have, and should have simply taken him aside and told him to be mindful of the signs next time. The game is ever-evolving. The reality of these “unwritten rules” is that if the rule isn’t written, it’s not a rule. And if La Russa can’t accept the changing of the guard, then the game has truly passed him by and he is out of touch with reality.
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