Most Ridiculous Pretension to an Unwritten Rule Ever?

Myt1

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DavidTai

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Tell me Rasmus told them to shift themselves.
 
I get why, but bunting is a damn good way to force teams to back off the shift, especially with the score being only 2-0 at the time.
 

Adrian's Dome

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I wish more players would do that. It'd end the use of the overshift (at least against mediocre hitters like Rasmus) pretty quickly, especially if guys who are dog slow can eek out base hits.
 
Lewis getting mad is the equivalent of a linebacker getting mad if he dropped into coverage and the QB dinked a quick pass to the RB for an easy 1st down. I mean, how dare you play to the glaring weakness of the opposing defense, am I right?
 

Soxy

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I think my favorite part is when Lewis claims that Rasmus was clearly just being selfish and padding his batting average because he didn't try to steal second. Because if Rasmus truly cared about winning, he would've tried to steal a base instead of merely not making an out. Even though he hasn't attempted a steal all season. And hasn't successfully stolen a base since 2012.

These are the delusional rantings of a crazy person.
 

NDame616

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The "unwriten rule" I believe is bunting late in a no hitter where the game is out hand, and even that is debatable. 
 
You guys may remember some pitcher named Curt Schilling who I think played around here....anyways before the bloody sock he almost threw a perfect game in Arizona and Ben Davis bunted in the 8th inning with the game at 2-0. I think it's perfectly fine since it brought up the tying run late in the game, but it brought up interesting discussions.
 
http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/05/26/10-years-ago-today-ben-davis-breaks-an-unwritten-rule/
 

Average Reds

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Some unwritten rules are at least understandable, even if I disagree, in the sense that they are about not showing up the opposition. But getting a base hit in a competitive game should not bother anyone.

Think a bunt is not a "real" hit? Then play a "real" defense and stop it.
 

PaulinMyrBch

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It's so stupid it needs to be placed in historical significance. Not sure where it would rank, but complaining that someone is trying to get a hit when you overload half the infield so he won't is pretty close to the top of the list.  It's a counter move to the shift. You don't move the infield, he doesn't bunt. Sort of like you don't talk, stupid shit doesn't come out of your mouth. 
 
Good info on the mules BTW.
 
Edit: Not to mention, unwritten rules are historical. The shift has been around a few years at best, and really in fashion lately. So when exactly did shift beating protocol get its own special section of rules in the book that is not written?
 

timlinin8th

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Average Reds said:
Think a bunt is not a "real" hit? Then play a "real" defense and stop it.
This.

So Rasmus was more concerned about getting on base and potentially helping his team win, rather than handing a no hitter to Lewis? Wah. The impetus is on the pitching and defense to earn the no hitter. 2-0 is still a close game, I would be bullshit if I was on a team and we weren't doing everything we can to win. Isn't that the original unwritten rule? "Do everything you can to help your team win the game"? Thought that was understood.
 

SumnerH

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PaulinMyrBch said:
 
Edit: Not to mention, unwritten rules are historical. The shift has been around a few years at best, and really in fashion lately. So when exactly did shift beating protocol get its own special section of rules in the book that is not written?
 
The illiterate rules committee meets biennially.  Or biannually.  They're not too good with the distinction.
 

Homar

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Wee Willie Keeler figured out in the 1890s that good things happen when you "hit 'em where they ain't."  Bunting against the shift is no more than this.  It was good baseball in 1894, and it's good baseball twelve centuries later.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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PaulinMyrBch said:
 
Edit: Not to mention, unwritten rules are historical. The shift has been around a few years at best, and really in fashion lately. So when exactly did shift beating protocol get its own special section of rules in the book that is not written?
Shifting every other LHH is a relatively recent phenomenon, but shifting has been a thing for decades. They used to shift Ted Williams.

Only thing I can think as far as where the 'unwritten' rule comes from is that the great hitters who've been shifted in the past (Williams, Ortiz, etc) have been too damn stubborn and proud to deign to bunt for a hit against the shift. To expect Colby freaking Rasmus to be 'proud' in that vein is ridiculous though.
 

someoneanywhere

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I don't know if they have a prior history or some kind of indirect relationship through agents or buddies or offended buddies, but this is about Lewis and Rasmus, and not about some phantom unwritten rule. You fold yourself in the unwritten rules -- in The Game -- when you seek to justify a personal agenda as a communitarian one. Rasmus does have a rep as a selfish guy, a me guy. So maybe this was Lewis looking for any opportunity to highlight that, even if his specific claim is ridiculous. 
 
Gonna be interesting to see what his own teammates say about Lewis's outburst, and what they say might be more telling because they can't agree with him on the particulars. 
 
Homar said:
Wee Willie Keeler figured out in the 1890s that good things happen when you "hit 'em where they ain't."  Bunting against the shift is no more than this.  It was good baseball in 1894, and it's good baseball twelve centuries later.
 
I didn't know baseball has been around for 1200 years. Anyone know what Charlemagne's batting average was?
 

CarolinaBeerGuy

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timlinin8th said:
So Rasmus was more concerned about getting on base and potentially helping his team win, rather than handing a no hitter to Lewis? Wah. The impetus is on the pitching and defense to earn the no hitter.
This wasn't a guy breaking up a no-hitter. Toronto (Rasmus' team) was up 2-0 at the time he laid down the bunt.
 

timlinin8th

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adam42381 said:
This wasn't a guy breaking up a no-hitter. Toronto (Rasmus' team) was up 2-0 at the time he laid down the bunt.
I squashed together two posts in my brain... My mistake. In either case, its the batters job to get on base, its the pitching and defense's job to prevent him, regardless of situation.
 

Max Power

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Red(s)HawksFan said:
Shifting every other LHH is a relatively recent phenomenon, but shifting has been a thing for decades. They used to shift Ted Williams.

Only thing I can think as far as where the 'unwritten' rule comes from is that the great hitters who've been shifted in the past (Williams, Ortiz, etc) have been too damn stubborn and proud to deign to bunt for a hit against the shift. To expect Colby freaking Rasmus to be 'proud' in that vein is ridiculous though.
 
Joe Posnanski had a good blog post recently about the shift and Ted's inability to hit around it. He felt like it wasn't so much stubbornness as a simple inability to change the type of hitter he was.
 
http://joeposnanski.com/joeblogs/the-boudreau-shift/
 

canderson

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Lewis has been around too, which makes this all the more stupid.

If bunting is being selfish to raise the hitter's BA then shifting is being selfish to lower the pitcher's ERA.
 

Homar

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Skeesix said:
 
I didn't know baseball has been around for 1200 years. Anyone know what Charlemagne's batting average was?
He had an SLG heavy OPS of .952 playing French Foreign Legion ball in the late 800s.  Not patient at the plate, never walked if he could ride.  But power?  My goodness the man had power!
 

YTF

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Isn't there some sort of unwritten rule stating that when you're ahead by 2 runs in the fifth inning you should still try to score runs to increase your chances of winning the game? Perhaps that's a foreign concept to the team with the worst record in baseball. Honestly I'd like to see more guys do this. How often do we hear the cliché about taking what the pitcher gives you? May as well take what the left side of the infield gives you as well.
 

HriniakPosterChild

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This is the kind of unwritten rule that would be a favorite of Tim McCarver. I've heard him say that with two out, you should be looking for an extra base hit if you don't have the ability to steal your way into scoring position. The idea behind this is that it is unlikely that the next two batters will hit singles to knock you in.
 
Like I said, McCarver.
 

mauidano

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I hope like hell Ron Washington ripped Colby Lewis a new one.  The talking heads on MLB.TV have sure been doing it all day long.  LOVE how Rasmus just stood on first and looked through Lewis as he was shooting off his pie hole.  Eat a big bag of dicks Lewis.  I don't know how anyone could be worse that David Price but there is a new leader in the club house.
 

edoug

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This is just a guy who is having a terrible season and out of frustration said something stupid. It doesn't compare with Price or McCann.