Phillies' 2018 Collapse Partially Blamed on Phortnite

DanoooME

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Interesting article that's eerily similar to the chicken and beer clubhouse situation for the Red Sox.

http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/26292911/how-phillies-2018-clubhouse-issues-caused-fortnite-led-smashed-tv

When the Philadelphia Phillies lost their ninth consecutive game toward the end of last September, veteran first baseman Carlos Santana felt like he needed to send a message to his teammates who he said spent portions of the game against the Atlanta Braves playing video games in the clubhouse. Santana grabbed a bat, retreated to the room at Citizens Bank Park where the gaming took place and smashed the TV to ensure there would be no more Fortnite the final two days of the season.

"I see a couple players -- I don't want to say names -- they play video games during the game," Santana told ESPN. "We come and lose too many games, and I feel like they weren't worried about it. Weren't respecting their teammates or coaches or the staff or the [front] office. It's not my personality. But I'm angry because I want to make it good."
 

Bozo Texino

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So Fortnite destroyed both my social studies students' ability to concentrate AND the Philadelphia Phillies 2018 season?

Wow.
 

Murderer's Crow

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How the heck does someone play during a game? Were they retreating to the clubhouse? I don't get it.

This may or may not be happening on every team, but man, if I knew a player on the Yankees was playing during games, I would immediately feel pretty negative about that person.
 

John Marzano Olympic Hero

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How the heck does someone play during a game? Were they retreating to the clubhouse? I don't get it.

This may or may not be happening on every team, but man, if I knew a player on the Yankees was playing during games, I would immediately feel pretty negative about that person.
That's what it sounds like. They played while the ballgame was going on.

I wonder what Kapler was doing during all of this?
 

DJnVa

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Dec 16, 2010
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How the heck does someone play during a game? Were they retreating to the clubhouse? I don't get it.
I'm guessing it was players not in game obviously, but in NL with the double switches, guys need to be always available. Seems crazy.
 

Yelling At Clouds

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Jul 19, 2005
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Jake Arrieta gives a somewhat different account, FWIW:

"There is some untruth to the story, some things that were not portrayed correctly," Arrieta said. "I don't believe that guys were playing video games during the game. That's something that I would not allow and a majority of the guys on the team would not allow.

"There was a lot of video-game playing and I was a part of it, too, but well in advance of the game — and that was something that we bonded over. It brought us close together and it was something we had in common. It was fun. But as far as during the game, and I've talked to a bunch of our guys, I do not believe that was taking place."

Arrieta went on to say that Santana did his damage late at night, well after most of the players had departed.
 

santadevil

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How the heck does someone play during a game? Were they retreating to the clubhouse? I don't get it.

This may or may not be happening on every team, but man, if I knew a player on the Yankees was playing during games, I would immediately feel pretty negative about that person.
Feelings on Aroldis are?
 

santadevil

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You said you would feel pretty negative about a player on the Yankees playing video games during the game.

Just wondering about how you feel about a guy who did something who everyone would characterize as worse than that. What's more negative than pretty negative? Very negative I guess.
 

Adrian's Dome

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You said you would feel pretty negative about a player on the Yankees playing video games during the game.

Just wondering about how you feel about a guy who did something who everyone would characterize as worse than that. What's more negative than pretty negative? Very negative I guess.
Yeah, it's worse, but it's also completely fucking unrelated, so...yeah, I'm with him, what's the point of bringing it up? If you got annoyed with Josh Gordon for getting suspended, it isn't a valid counterpoint to bring up Aaron Hernandez.

The point isn't the video games, the point is that it was happening in-game (allegedly), which makes it a unique kind of "offense" that can have a direct (but unquantifiable) effect on morale and what's actually happening in the dugout and on the field.
 

santadevil

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Yeah, it's worse, but it's also completely fucking unrelated, so...yeah, I'm with him, what's the point of bringing it up? If you got annoyed with Josh Gordon for getting suspended, it isn't a valid counterpoint to bring up Aaron Hernandez.

The point isn't the video games, the point is that it was happening in-game (allegedly), which makes it a unique kind of "offense" that can have a direct (but unquantifiable) effect on morale and what's actually happening in the dugout and on the field.
First off, I agree with your last paragraph wholly

Secondly, I brought it up because I don't love the choice of language the blanket statement
"I'd feel pretty negative if a player from my (insert favorite team here) did (insert something dumb here)"

Just feels like lazy posting, just to post something additional.
I should've mentioned that I did agree with him that there are too many unknown's at this point, like he asked about.

But I agree, totally unrelated and I probably shouldn't have brought it up either, just something twigged me to it and made me ask the question
 

Marciano490

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They lost nine consecutive games. That’d be over two weeks right? Sounds like a misunderstanding to me.