Rougned Odor (Texas Rangers) - Jose Bautista (Toronto Blue Jays) Dust-Up

Suspensions came down for the recent Rougned Odor-Jose Bautista dust-up.  While fighting in and of itself is not a good thing it is somewhat excepted or even expected.  And fighting may be too harsh a description.  Many of these altercations are little more than players posturing with little to no harm done.  But this was a fight with a real-deal, no kidding punch landed squarely to the jaw of Jose Bautista.  Nice.  It was a doozy.   I can't say I've seen a better punch in a baseball brawl.  It wasn't at the Kermit Washington level of brutal punch (NBA, circa 1977) but it was well done and is one that will be remembered, and referenced for a very long time. 

I enjoy fights in sports.  Again I understand fighting is bad and don't ever want to see someone seriously hurt or their career altered as like what happened with the Washington punch. But sports is emotional and these things happen. Again most times it is a bunch of posturing with not much actually happening.  Hockey has made it an art.  One of baseballs most famous is the ageless Nolan Ryan and Robin Ventura.  As famous as that was there were no real injuries from that melee.  

So while most are enjoying this moment it definitely could have been looked at in a different light.  If Bautista went down and was seriously hurt there'd be nothing more than condemnation towards Rougned.  So it is a fine line we walk with fights in sports.  I'll give this one a grade of "A".  That well placed punch was something you rarely see in any sport not called boxing. 




SUSPENSIONS
Rougned Odor - 8 Games
Jose Bautista - 1 Game
Elivs Andrus - 1 Game
John Gibbons - 3 Games
Jesse Chavez - 3 Games

P.S. Was it pretty lame that Texas waited until late in the Sunday game to hit Bautista?  If you are going to do it, do it first game of the series and let it play out.  Be man enough to deal with the repercussions.  My two cents.