Yet another reminder that home plate collisions need to be banned...

[madinmaryland]

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The home-plate collision you can see above took place Wednesday night in the first game of the Eastern League semifinals between the Double-A Erie SeaWolves and Harrisburg Senators. SeaWolves second baseman Brandon Douglas, who scored on the play, absolutely bulldozes Senators catcher Brian Jeroloman, who suffered a gash on his chin, was taken to the hospital for treatment and tests and will miss the remainder of the series. Douglas suffered no injuries. As bad as it looked, it could have been worse. Still, it shouldn’t have been allowed.

Simply put, a runner should not be allowed to intentionally strike a fielder in possession of the ball in a manner intended to dislodge the ball. It’s true that the official definition of a catch in the major league rule book states, “It is not a catch . . . if simultaneously or immediately following his contact with the ball, [the fielder] collides with a player . . . and as a result of such collision or falling, drops the ball.” I don’t necessarily think that should be changed. I do, however, think that if that contact is intentional, and on a play like the one above it’s easy to discern intention, the runner should be called out automatically.

It boggles my mind that collisions like the one above are allowed at home plate. If a runner plowed into a fielder at any other base like that, there would be nearly universal outrage over the play. If a runner makes an excessive attempt to take out a fielder on a potential double play, not only is he called out, but so is the batter running to first base. That’s true despite the fact that the official scorers can’t assign errors on botched double plays if the fielding team converts one out. Yet a runner can plow over a catcher with no regard for the location of home plate and still be credited with a run if he hits him hard enough to jar the ball loose.

hat’s madness.

I don’t care if the catcher is a career minor leaguer like Jeroloman or a superstar like Buster Posey — the Giants’ franchise player who missed most of the 2011 season after being leveled on a play at the plate — he should be protected from such assaults. Runners who intentionally steamroll catchers like Douglas did on Wednesday should not only be out, they should be suspended, as they would be for any other excessive on-field violence.

Read more: http://mlb.si.com/2013/09/06/double-a-home-plate-collision/?sct=hp_t2_a8&eref=sihp

[El Supremo]

1. But then you have douchebags like A-Rod. >>

I just don't like changing any rules in baseball. Leave that up to the NFL and its incessant meddling.

[madinmaryland]

2. The question is why is it ok to slam into the catcher, but no one else on the field?

At least they could be consistent.

Remember this...

[El Supremo]

3. You can collide with any player as long as you don't leave the basepath.

The catcher is a big target when he tries to protect the plate.

But Rose and Cobb were just assholes to begin with.

[wilt the stilt]

6. Cobb was dirty

he slid spikes up. Rose played good clean hard baseball. loved Rose as a player.

[KamaAina]

4. Actually, I think that might have been the guy who drilled Posey.

He was back in the minors the next week. And considering he was with the Marlins, that's saying something!

[wilt the stilt]

5. guy's you need 2 rule changes

the first is the catcher has to exit the base path. In other words he can only do swipe tags above the plate or to the side of the base path. if he get's in the base path he is fair game. The catcher is purposely denying the runner access to the base that is why he gets hammered.

[caraher]

7. That makes sense to me, but

in this case, it looks to me like the catcher was not really blocking the plate, though clearly standing in the path a runner would take. Seems like the runner could have chosen to try to touch the plate ahead of the tag, but instead went high and leveled a catcher who was not between him and home plate.

I'm OK with the "frontier justice" of allowing baserunners to collide with a catcher positioned to make contact with home plate nearly impossible (you don't typically see fielders do this at other bases) - even with the attendant injury risks. But I think this example is truly egregious and was all about the player deciding the better bet was to make holding the ball impossible, rather than getting to the plate ahead of a possible tag.

[trumad]

8. I agree with that...

SOmething has got to change before someone is paralyzed or worse.

[wilt the stilt]

9. that may happen

but catchers have been blocking the plate over 100 years.

[backwoodsbob]

10. and that's the problem in a nutshell

if you ban homeplate collisions without banning blocking the plate the catcher will win EVERY close play at the plate

[Fantastic Anarchist]

11. No, they should not be banned.

Incredible.