Joe Kelly suspended 8 games for throwing at an astro

nattysez

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Head: Kelly deserves this, Manfred trying to avoid others retaliating against the Astros, etc.

Heart: what a load of garbage
 

InstaFace

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Head: Kelly might deserve something, but on the other hand, anyone who watched that inning knows he had absolutely no idea where the ball was going, definitely up to and possibly including the Correa AB.

Heart: Fuck the Astros. If Kelly knocked a few holes in them, microphones would probably fall out.
 

Pablo's TB Lover

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Yeah on the one hand the "unwritten rules of the game" bullshit always bothers me, so MLB throwing the book at Kelly makes me happy in that sense. Like "No, MLB has punished the Astros so take your pettiness elsewhere like passive-aggressive twitter posts".

But on the other hand the Astros players did not actually face any form of discipline over garbage can gate, so the other half of my brain says this vigilante justice may not be a bad thing and the overkill punishment is an obvious coddling of the 'Stros.
 

bankshot1

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Doesn't a starter usually get a 5-6 game suspension in these type of situations to guarantee they miss one start?

8-games seems overly punitive to send a message and protect the Astros.

I suspect an appeal and MLB knocks off 2-3 games.
 

Bob Montgomerys Helmet Hat

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Head: Kelly might deserve something, but on the other hand, anyone who watched that inning knows he had absolutely no idea where the ball was going, definitely up to and possibly including the Correa AB.

Heart: Fuck the Astros. If Kelly knocked a few holes in them, microphones would probably fall out.
I completely disagree. He knew where the ball was going, and kept doing it. He got what he deserved
 

scottyno

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I remember a month or so ago MLB said there would be zero tolerance this year for brawls because of the social distancing aspect. I don't remember if that applied to benches clearing too, but could be the reason for the extra long suspension. Also, don't throw at guys heads.
 

Bergs

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Wouldn't want to scare those poor Astros with a pitch behind their back. After all, they don't know what's coming this year.
 

edoug

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He was throwing at their heads. There’s no place for that in the game, even if fans want vigilante justice.
Yeah, you can't throw at someone's head and then act like he did. First time I saw it it aws surreal and laughed but no, that's not okay by any stretch.

I remember a month or so ago MLB said there would be zero tolerance this year for brawls because of the social distancing aspect. I don't remember if that applied to benches clearing too, but could be the reason for the extra long suspension. Also, don't throw at guys heads.
This too, not a bright idea. And Kelly shouldn't be the one. He doesn't have any reason to be upset.
 

DJnVa

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I love Joe Kelly. This might be the most entertaining Red Sox related thing all season.
 

edoug

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I love Joe Kelly. This might be the most entertaining Red Sox related thing all season.
Not exactly setting a high bar there. But it is appropriate for the the way the season is going, losing games. Kelly's losing 8 games, right now before appealing, and the Sox just plain losing games.
 

Light-Tower-Power

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Absolutely absurd. I guess he deserves 1-2 games for throwing near the head, but 8 games is ridiculous. That extrapolates to a 21-22 game suspension during a normal season. And honestly, I thought the taunting was hysterical. Short of getting beaned, the Astros should get what they deserve.
 

ColdSoxPack

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It is also Joe's second offense that may explain the length. You remember his epic fight with Tyler Austin of the Yankees in 2018. That started the reputation of Fighting Joe.
 

E5 Yaz

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I think the length is an unsubtle message ... cut the shit out.

No one "deserves" to be thrown at ... except a pitcher who throws at one of the othefr guys first.
 

grimshaw

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If a pitcher knew that he'd get 20+ games for throwing at someone's head (basically 5 starts for a starter or 8+ innings from a reliever) then I'm sure it wouldn't happen much anymore. The deterrent needs to be there.

Joe knew he couldn't find the plate with anything, doubled down and paid the price. I'm sure his teammates will chip in to pay for his fine. The fact that he had nothing to do with that world series team is even stupider.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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The pitch behind Bregman deserves some discipline. The one at Correa was a breaking ball that didn't break. Bad timing more than bad intent, IMO.

His taunting of the Astros when they started chirping was classic Joe Kelly. I laughed at that.

The fact that he had nothing to do with that world series team is even stupider.
He was part of the team that got slapped around pretty good by the trash can banging 'Stros in the ALDS that season. You'd think 2018 was revenge enough for that, though.
 

cornwalls@6

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He was throwing at their heads. There’s no place for that in the game, even if fans want vigilante justice.
This. The topic of whether the league was strong enough in their discipline is a separate and legit discussion. There is no place for ongoing frontier justice. Whatever their offenses were, a career ending, or life threatening, injury is not in any way justifiable. MLB is rightly trying to get out in front of this, and put a stop to it.
 

Marciano490

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That’s one of the funniest thing I’ve ever seen. Are those his actual kids or just some neighborhood children he had stand in?
 

LogansDad

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Also, Dave Roberts getting suspended, but not Dusty Baker after yelling "Get on the mound, you little fucker" or something to that affect, is kind of lame.

Kelly threw 17 strikes on 18 pitches. I don't think the 2nd one was on purpose, though the first one, on a 3-0 pitch, likely was. I think a suspension was warranted, 8 games seems like a lot, and also makes it look like Manfred is going to go out of his way to protect the Astros, which won't endear him or the Astros to anyone, in my opinion.
 

sodenj5

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I mean it’s 13.333% of the season. The length is a bit preposterous.

Pretty sure the Astros got off with less severe penalties for actually cheating their way to a WS.
 

Moonlight Graham

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I think the length is an unsubtle message ... cut the shit out.

No one "deserves" to be thrown at ... except a pitcher who throws at one of the othefr guys first.
I disagree. The Astros deserve to get thrown at. They stole at least one championship. If the MLB won't punish them, I think the players should. I don't want to see any pitches anywhere near the head, but I would love to see multiple batters get plunked in their ribs or legs. This season will be canceled anyway, and there are no fans to relentlessly boo them all game long. That level of cheating deserves this level of punishment.
 

YTF

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I mean it’s 13.333% of the season. The length is a bit preposterous.

Pretty sure the Astros got off with less severe penalties for actually cheating their way to a WS.
I have zero issue with the length of suspension. Sure his control was shit, but two guys were thrown behind and Joe was showing absolutely no remorse. And arguing what the Astros may have gotten away with has nothing to do with this suspension. What's the word they use in V & N? Whataboutism?
 

sodenj5

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I have zero issue with the length of suspension. Sure his control was shit, but two guys were thrown behind and Joe was showing absolutely no remorse. And arguing what the Astros may have gotten away with has nothing to do with this suspension. What's the word they use in V & N? Whataboutism?
Manfred brought this on the Astros. Everyone knew this was going to happen after his joke of a punishment.

No he shouldn’t be throwing at anyone’s head, but this will continue to happen all year.
 

jon abbey

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The Astros got punished quite a bit, but the individual players didn't get punished at all (I agree that it would have been difficult to do this) and some prominent guys were unapologetic dicks about it. They're going to get thrown at more and while on one level, it is dumb and dangerous, on another level they absolutely deserve it.
 

YTF

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Manfred brought this on the Astros. Everyone knew this was going to happen after his joke of a punishment.

No he shouldn’t be throwing at anyone’s head, but this will continue to happen all year.
Partly, but a large contributor to this situation was the severe lack of acknowledgment/contrition of any wrong doing until they were basically forced into it. Bregman and Correa were both extremely douchey in their tripling down about this. Drill a guy in the ribs and move on. I don't care, get one every game. Make them think about who's getting plunked and when if you want, but if these guys are getting buzzed every night, someone's going to get seriously hurt. It needs to get nipped in the bud and if 8 games doesn't send a message, perhaps the next guy gets 12.
 
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amRadio

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Kelly threw 17 strikes on 18 pitches. I don't think the 2nd one was on purpose, though the first one, on a 3-0 pitch, likely was.
I assume this was a typo, so I don't intend to be on the attack here, but how can one throw 17/18 strikes while also ending up in a 3-0 count?

Kelly had horrendous control that inning. The pitch to Correa was not intentional. I think the assumption that any of his pitches that inning were intentionally aimed above the shoulders at the Astros is dubious. Not far fetched at all, but his control sucks, I can't give him that much credit.

E: typo(s)
 
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sodenj5

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I assume this was a typo, so I don't intend to be on the attack here, but how can one throw 17/18 strikes while also ending up in a 3-0 count?

Kelly had horrendous control that inning. The pitch to Correa was not intentional. I think the assumption that any of his pitches that inning were intentionally aimed above the shoulders as the Astros is dubious. Not far fetched at all, but his control sucks, I can't give him that much credit.
Kelly was all over the place. I don’t doubt for a second he tried to plunk Bregman with the 3-0 pitch. I don’t think he was necessarily trying to hit him in the head. The pitch to Correa was a breaking ball. If Kelly is throwing at someone, he’s throwing 102 inside, not an 88 MPH slider.

Basically Joe Kelly is the Astros’ worst nightmare. A dude that throws absolute gas and isn’t even 50% sure where it’s going and doesn’t give a single f about hitting anyone.
 

LogansDad

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I assume this was a typo, so I don't intend to be on the attack here, but how can one throw 17/18 strikes while also ending up in a 3-0 count?

Kelly had horrendous control that inning. The pitch to Correa was not intentional. I think the assumption that any of his pitches that inning were intentionally aimed above the shoulders at the Astros is dubious. Not far fetched at all, but his control sucks, I can't give him that much credit.

E: typo(s)
Yes, it was 7 strikes on 18 pitches, my bad. And yes, my point was the same as yours, I don't think the one to Correa was intentional.
 

lexrageorge

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Those of us that saw Matt Cooke get off easy after essentially ending Marc Savard's career were pretty upset. Joe Kelly could have ended a player's career (or worse) throwing at someone's head.

If pitchers want to keep throwing at players heads, then let them feel the pain of a lengthy suspension.
 

grimshaw

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The pitch behind Bregman deserves some discipline. The one at Correa was a breaking ball that didn't break. Bad timing more than bad intent, IMO.

His taunting of the Astros when they started chirping was classic Joe Kelly. I laughed at that.
This part was very amusing, I don't want to sound like a humorless old fart. I have always thought he was a funny dude and interesting interview but the culture needs to change.

And to those talking about length of the suspension, you can't really give him something like say 2-5 games to send a message. It just opens the door for starters to only miss a single start for doing the same thing, when more likely they would lose at least two during the regular season. I could see an argument for not suspending him without pay for the entire time though.
 
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SemperFidelisSox

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It’s all fun and memes until Altuve or Bregman end up with a fractured skull. They didn’t burn down orphanages, they banged on trash cans. Fans who are actively rooting for violence against these guys are taking their baseball way too seriously. Waaay too seriously.

And at some point, the Astros will start retaliating. Their pitchers won’t sit there all season and let the position players take head shots.. When Verlander breaks your teams best hitters wrist, then what?
 

OCST

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The head is off limits.

The Astros hitters are going to get theirs and I'm really not busted up about it.

8 games is too much.

I like Joe Kelly a lot more than I like the '20 Red Sox.
 

joe dokes

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Whether 8 games is too much or just right is angels on the head of a pin stuff. The pitch at Bregman is indefensible.
It was *behind* his head, which every analyst I've ever heard says is worse, because a player's natural reaction is to back into it.
And Kelly's lack of control is irrelevant, IMO, and no less reckless. Blind man shoots gun.
 
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