Major League Baseball

After heated Royals-A's series, a cool-headed look at what sparked it all

Published Apr. 19, 2015 11:46 p.m. ET

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A few points on the contentious Royals-A's weekend series, which could produce fines and/or suspensions after purpose pitches and general shenanigans.

*I don't believe Oakland's Brett Lawrie tried to injure Kansas City shortstop Alcides Escobar with his aggressive slide in the seventh inning of Friday's series opener. But it was a bad play -- because of the way it hurt the A's in a 6-4 loss, more so than a breach of baseball etiquette.

Clearly, the intent of Lawrie's hard (and late) slide was to break up a double play . . . but by the time Lawrie collided with Escobar, the chance of turning two on Josh Reddick was gone. Reddick, an average runner, was virtually certain to be safe at first as soon as the ball ricocheted off reliever Kelvin Herrera. Escobar's positioning at second base -- square to third base, taking the throw almost as a first baseman -- reflected that reality. Escobar never angled his body in a way that suggested he believed a double play was realistic.

So, the path of Lawrie's slide -- into Escobar's left leg -- reflected a lack of awareness on Lawrie's part. In fact, replays revealed that Lawrie might've been safe at second if his foot had been directed at the base, rather than the infielder taking the throw.

Was Lawrie's play intentionally dirty? No. But it was unwise. And Lawrie has a history of exhibiting poor baseball judgment. There was the time in July 2012 when, while playing for a non-contending Blue Jays team, he catapulted himself into a Yankee Stadium camera well while trying to catch a foul ball . . . in the third inning . . . with Toronto already trailing 4-0.

All-out effort? Sure. Smart play? Absolutely not. The same description applied Friday night. Lawrie, although only 25, has been a major leaguer for all or part of five seasons. He should know better.

*Last season, Escobar became the first player since Jimmy Rollins in 2007 to start all 162 games at shortstop. It's a shame Escobar was knocked out of the lineup by an injury sustained while he was making the right baseball play. But the real travesty will be if Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association pass up this opportunity to clarify rules governing slides into bases -- especially second.

We'd all agree that home plate is the most important "base" in the sport; it is unique, because reaching home means scoring a run.

Last year, MLB and the MLBPA agreed on language compelling runners to slide into home plate if they have a lane to do so. Yet, there has been no such clarification on the other bases -- where, significantly, an infielder applying the tag isn't protected by catcher's equipment. Instead, vague guidelines about obstruction are considered law on the bases. In practice, umpires exercise considerable discretion over players who don't fully understand the rules.

The lack of consistency screams for a uniform resolution. Perhaps MLB and the MLBPA could extend the new home plate provisions to the other bases. While I'm reluctant to say it would be an easy fix -- there's no such thing in baseball, as the new home plate rules themselves have demonstrated -- the foundation is there.

Of note, there had been at least some discussion about a rule change on the bases among baseball officials during the offseason. The Arizona Fall League played under a rule in 2014 requiring runners to slide directly into second base on possible double plays.

As Mike Mordecai, a 12-year big leaguer who managed the AFL's Mesa Solar Sox, told me: "Sliding into second will cut down on injuries, both for the fielder and the runner. Quite frankly, there aren't a lot of guys that really know how to bust up double plays. They slide early and never quite get to the fielder."

*I acknowledge that Yordano Ventura is one of my favorite young pitchers in baseball. His personality is as lively as his repertoire, and he rightly earned respect throughout the sport with two magnificent performances in the World Series -- including an emotional one in Game 6 after the death of his friend, Cardinals outfielder Oscar Taveras.

But now the dominant storyline in two consecutive Ventura starts has been his conduct, not his pitching. A week ago, Ventura barked at Mike Trout when the game's best player hit an innocuous-looking single -- leading to a mild benches-clearing confrontation a short time later. And on Saturday, Ventura was ejected after hitting Lawrie in retribution for Escobar's injury.  

Lawrie, to his credit, walked to first base without complaint. He seemed to know it was coming, as did a number of others at Kauffman Stadium. But Ventura unnecessarily escalated matters by walking toward Lawrie, bringing players out of both dugouts before plate umpire Jim Joyce adeptly defused tensions (for the time being).

The Royals shouldn't coach the Pedro Martinez-like competitiveness out of Ventura. A visible intensity, coursing through an undersized frame, is one of the reasons Ventura has perennial All-Star potential. But given the often arbitrary nature of warnings, ejections and even suspensions by MLB umpires and officials, the Royals should be concerned that their young ace is acquiring a reputation as a pitcher who settles scores first and considers the implications later.

Hitting Lawrie was not the problem. What he did after hitting Lawrie was. And if Ventura is suspended for his actions, the Royals will be put at a disadvantage -- however temporarily -- in what is on track to be a tight, highly competitive American League Central race.

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