White Sox players openly disagree with Tony La Russa’s support of MLB unwritten rules
When the White Sox hired 76-year-old Tony La Russa as manager in October, one of the concerns from fans was how he would relate to players who were half-a-century younger.
That has become an issue this week following, oddly, a blowout victory over the Twins on Monday night.
Chicago rolled to a 16-4 win, and the final run was scored when designated hitter Yermin Mercedes crushed a home run on a 3-0 pitch from Twins first baseman Willians Astudillo in the ninth inning.
That apparently broke one of baseball’s dreaded unwritten rules, and the Twins dished out their own form of justice by hitting Mercedes in Tuesday’s game:
La Russa said it wasn’t “suspicious” because the pitch from Tyler Duffey wasn’t at Mercedes’ head.
“The guy threw a sinker and it didn’t look good. I wasn’t suspicious. I’m suspicious when someone throws at someone’s head. I don’t have a problem with how the Twins handled that,” La Russa said following Tuesday’s game.
Before the game, La Russa told reporters he was not happy with Mercedes’ decision to swing at a 3-0 pitch in a blowout win.
“He made a mistake,” La Russa said, according to ESPN’s Jesse Rogers. “There will be a consequence he has to endure here within our family.”
The family apparently doesn’t agree with La Russa.
NBC Sports Chicago posted quotes from La Russa and Mercedes about Monday’s home run on Instagram. White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson commented, showing his support for Mercedes and not his manager.
Mercedes then commented on what Anderson wrote:
White Sox pitcher Lance Lynn also thought there was nothing wrong with Mercedes’ home run.
“If a position player is on the mound, there are no rules,” Lynn said after Tuesday’s game, per Ryan McGuffey of NBC Sports Chicago. “Let’s get the damn game over with. And if you have a problem with whatever happened, then put a pitcher out there.”
So there apparently is a disagreement between La Russa and the younger players, just as longtime baseball reporter Craig Calcaterra predicted in October. In fact, Calcaterra nearly called the exact date that this would happen:
This story was originally published May 19, 2021 at 8:54 AM.
