In latest bat flip flap, big league players side with Little Leaguer
'I thought that was ridiculous. You're going suspend a kid for having fun?" the New York Yankees All-Star infielder said Friday. ' Crazy.'
Marco Rocco, a 12-year-old from Haddonfield, New Jersey, tossed his bat in the air on July 16 after his sixth-inning, two-run homer in the final of the sectional tournament for Haddonfield's under-12 team against Harrison Township on July 16. His father went to court and got the suspension eliminated.
'If it's a game-changing homer, it's fine. Even when I'm on the mound, it doesn't irk me. It's a human reaction and it's good for the game, just like a pitcher doing a fist pump after a big strikeout," said Toronto pitcher Max Scherzer, a three-time Cy Young Award winner. "I side-eye someone if they hit a solo shot and their team is down 5-0. That doesn't jive with me. I don't like it when opponents or teammates do that. I feel the same way about Little Leaguers.'
Rocco was ejected for what his family was told were actions deemed 'unsportsmanlike' and 'horseplay,' and an ejection results in an automatic one-game suspension.
His father, Joe, is a lawyer and his dad filed suit. Judge Robert G. Malestein of New Jersey Superior Court ruled in favor of the Roccos, and Marco played for Haddonfield against Elmora Little League in a 10-0 loss Thursday in the opener of a four-team, double-elimination tournament at the Deptford Township Little League complex. Marco went 0 for 2 with two strikeouts.
'I wish nobody would do a bat flip. I'm kind of traditional,' Philadelphia Phillies manager Rob Thomson said before adding, 'But let him play.'
A staid sport for much of the 19th and 20th centuries, baseball has embraced emotion in recent years. José Bautista's bat flip against Texas in a 2015 AL Division Series was featured in the video game MLB The Show 16.
'It's a kid's game, Whether you're a kid or a major leaguer, we're in a have-fun era," Detroit catcher Jake Rogers said. "If you earn that moment, you earn that moment.'
___
AP Sports Writer Larry Lage contributed to this report.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
3 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Dodgers star Mookie Betts reveals death of family member after unexplained absence from the team
Dodgers star Mookie Betts has revealed the death of a family member caused him to miss his team's trip to the Red Sox on Friday. Betts was absent for the meeting against his former ballclub as LA manager Dave Roberts said beforehand that the player was dealing with personal issues. And after fully returning to the lineup on Sunday (he also pinch-hit on Saturday), Betts explained to reporters that his stepfather, Willie, had passed away. 'My stepdad passed. So I needed to go home, be with my mom, somebody that's been there in my life from fourth grade until now,' he said. So, that was tough for me and the family, but I just needed to be there for my mom and my brothers and sisters. 'So, it's just a tough time, and there's no real way to really explain something like that outside of just being there and spending time with the family.' After flying home to Tennessee to be with his family, Betts traveled on his own to Boston and entered the Dodgers' contest against the Red Sox on Saturday in the middle of the game as a pinch-hitter. Roberts told reporters that Betts got his 'own plane' to make it back to Boston. 'For me, it just meant a lot that he found a way to get here and be available and take the at-bat late,' he said, via the AP. Betts returned to his usual starting role on Sunday - the final game of the Dodgers-Red Sox series - and went 1-for-4 as his team lost 4-3. It's been a difficult season for the eight-time All-Star as he's batting a career-low .237 at the plate. The 32-year-old missed out on the All-Star Game for the first time since 2015 (excluding the Covid-affected 2020 season) and told reporters on Sunday that he would 'like to play better baseball.' July has been a particularly difficult month for Betts as he's hit just .182, leading Roberts to bench him for a game earlier this month. Betts will look to return to form when the Dodgers travel to the Reds on Monday.
The Guardian
3 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Bubba Wallace becomes first black winner of Brickyard 400
Bubba Wallace climbed out of the No 23 car on Sunday, pumped his fists, found his family and savored every precious moment of a historic Brickyard 400 victory. He deserved every minute of it. The 31-year-old Wallace overcame a tenuous 18-minute rain delay, two tantalizing overtimes, fears about running out of fuel late and the hard-charging defending race champ, Kyle Larson, on back-to-back restarts to become the first Black driver to win a major race on Indianapolis Motor Speedway's 2.5-mile oval. No Black driver has won the Indianapolis 500, and Formula One raced on the track's road course. 'This one's really cool,' Wallace said. 'Coming off Turn 4, I knew I was going to get there – unless we ran out of gas. I was surprised I wasn't crying like a little baby.' His third career Nascar Cup victory delivered Wallace's first victory in the series' four crown jewel events, the others being the Daytona 500, Coca-Cola 600 and Southern 500. It also snapped a 100-race winless streak that dated to 2022 at Kansas and locked up a playoff spot. His only other win came at Talladega in 2021. The final gap was 0.222 seconds, but that was no measure of the consternation he faced. Larson cut a 5.057-second deficit with 14 laps to go to about three seconds with six laps left as the yellow flag came out for the rain. The cars then rolled to a stop on pit lane with four laps remaining, forcing Wallace to think and rethink his restart strategy. 'The whole time I'm thinking are we going? Are we not?' he said. 'I will say I leaned more towards 'I know we're going to go back racing. Be ready. Don't get complacent here.' Wallace made sure of it. He beat Larson through the second turn on the first restart only to have a crash behind him force a second overtime, forcing his crew to recalculate whether they had enough fuel to finish the race or whether he needed to surrender the lead and refuel. In Wallace's mind, there was no choice. 'The first thing that went through my mind was, 'Here we go again,'' he said. 'But then I said, 'I want to win this straight up. I want to go back racing.' Here we are.' He beat Larson off the restart again and pulled away, preventing Larson from becoming the race's fourth back-to-back winner. The victory also alleviated the frustration Wallace felt Saturday when he spent most of the qualifying session on the provisional pole only to see Chase Briscoe claim the No 1 starting spot with one of the last runs in the session. On Sunday, he made sure there was no repeat, providing an added boost to the 23XI Racing team co-owned by basketball Hall of Famer Michael Jordan and last week's race winner, Denny Hamlin, as they continue to battle Nascar in court over its charter status. 'Those last 20 laps there were ups and downs and I was telling myself 'You won't be able to do it,'' Wallace said. 'Once I'd seen it was Larson, I knew he won here last year and he's arguably the best in the field. So to beat the best, we had to be the best today.'
Daily Mail
3 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Concerning update on Matthew Stafford after Rams QB missed the start of camp with recurring issue
Matthew Stafford is not reporting to Los Angeles Rams training camp when originally thought, as the team's head coach, Sean McVay, provided a further update on his star signal caller. Stafford was believed to be reporting to training camp this week with a recurring neck issue finally being solved. Yet, the timeline to see the 37-year-old in action has been moved back, while McVay says there has not been a decline in Stafford's status. 'The ultimate goal is Houston [for the season opener], and being mindful of that, so we'll take it a week at a time with him,' McVay said over the weekend. Based on sitting down with [the team's sports medicine and performance senior vice president] Reggie [Scott] and with Matthew and talking with Dr. [Robert] Watkins, we feel like that's the smart thing to do. A week at a time with him.' 'But I don't have any more concerns. The goal in mind is Houston, and I do think this is the best plan for him.' Backup Jimmy Garoppolo will run the Rams' offense in the early practices, while the Rams also added quarterback Dresser Winn to the roster. Stafford is playing this season with a substantial $44m raise after a second straight offseason of financial discontent. This dispute was resolved more quickly than last year's standoff, and Stafford participated in the Rams' offseason workout programs to begin forming a bond with new receiver Davante Adams. Stafford will eventually line up for his 17th straight season as a starting quarterback in the NFL, one of the longest streaks in the league. The Rams star is only behind Aaron Rodgers as a guaranteed QB1 in 2025, with Kirk Cousins and Joe Flacco also looming as possibilities. 'It does not worry me,' McVay continued. 'What I probably should have done is say we're taking it a week at a time, but I don't have any reason to be concerned based on the information that's been given. With that being said, I don't think we can be smart enough with somebody like Matthew' 'I think it's best for him and best for our football team. That's kind of the plan we'll have moving forward. I know that will surprise people, but I did want to at least let you guys know as we're begin fluid with this. But we don't have any reason for concern, but I do think it's the smart thing just based on [getting him ready for the season opener] Sept. 7... with that being the main goal in mind.'
