New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi was ejected on Sunday night after he went ballistic when Boston Red Sox starter Ryan Dempster blatantly threw at and hit Alex Rodriguez on purpose. Girardi had every right to be upset, as home plate umpire Brian O’Nara could have easily ejected Dempster for the stunt but chose not to.
“Ryan Dempster has hit six guys in the last 320 innings,” Girardi said, via the NY Daily News. “He threw the first ball behind him; intentional. He threw the next one inside, he didn’t hit him, intentional. At some point Brian O’Nora has got to give him a warning. And he should’ve thrown him out of the game is the bottom line.
After watching his team claw its way to a come-from-behind victory, Girardi did not cool down much. He blasted Dempster for trying to take the law into his own hands following the game.
“Ryan Dempster has been a player rep and has been very involved in the union,” the Yanks manager said. “He knows these guys, this is what they decided to do, so you can’t change it just take your pot shots. And you’d have to have your head in the sand with the comments that came from the other side not to know that something might be up. I thought it was handled very poorly and I was upset about yesterday because calls went against us that changed the complexion of the game. Then you have this. It’s just flat wrong.”
Girardi also implied that Dempster would have been plunked if it was a National League game.
“I wish he had to hit,” Girardi said, according to Newsday’s David Lennon. “That’s what I wish.”
Both benches were warned after Dempster hit A-Rod, which meant CC Sabathia would have been ejected immediately in an important game if he tried to retaliate. Some of Dempster’s teammates and even one AL East rival believe Rodriguez has no business playing during his appeal, but the Collective Bargaining Agreement is in place for a reason. You don’t have to defend A-Rod to defend his right to appeal.
