I may have been harsh on Jon Lester in the past, but I’m actually here to defend the guy. When the suspensions for the Coco Crisp/James Shields brawl came down, there was one I couldn’t quite understand: Jon Lester, five games. Where the heck was he in the fight? Nowhere, far as I could tell. And he is equally perplexed by the suspension:
“It doesn’t add up to me. They didn’t give a justified reason. I didn’t get thrown out, and I didn’t hit anybody on purpose. (MLB VP of Rules Bob Watson) said, ‘You hit Crawford with a curveball and guys are hitting guys with curveballs now.’ It’s stupid,” Lester said. “They have no idea. (Watson) didn’t watch the video. He doesn’t have a feel for the game. He doesn’t understand baseball.”
Lester’s exactly right. What pitcher makes a purpose pitch with a 70mph breaking ball? That makes zero sense. Coco, Shields, Iwamura, Crawford, Navarro, those are the guys that deserve suspensions. Someone explain to me how Jon Lester fits in. Like a lollipop breaking ball’s really intended to send a message. Please.
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Sean Casey deserved it too. I didn’t think so until I watched a couple slow-mos of the fight and saw him (LITERALLY) flying into the pile with his fists swinging.