Jered Weaver awarded six game ban for unruly pitching – MLB News
Los Angeles Angels’ ace starting pitcher Jered Weaver was handed a six-game suspension by Major League Baseball on Tuesday, August 2 for intentionally throwing a pitch towards the head of Detroit Tigers’ Alex Avila. Weaver’s punishment is similar to Cleveland
Indians’ Carlos Carrasco who was charged for throwing near the head of Kansas City Royals’ Billy Butler.
Weaver, who is largely regarded as an icon in the Angels' line-up, suffered criticism from his team management, team-mates and fans alike. His act exhibited his fragility and he should have controlled his temper while on the mound at least.
The throw came as a reaction to the actions of sluggers Magglio Ordonez and Carlos Guillen of Detroit who hung around the bases after hitting home-runs to Weaver. Frustration took the better of Weaver and he targeted Avila who came on the plate after them.
Angels’ manager Mike Scioscia said that he wished that he could have stopped Weaver from doing it. The act, which came out in anger, could have had serious repercussions if the ball had actually hit Avila. Throwing at the head has been a common practice
among the pitchers to show aggression and impose authority but pitchers who do stick to this tactic lack sportsmanship. There are pitchers who have managed to impose authority and gain respect at the mound without siding with such disgraceful acts.
The wild throw by Weaver could have made sense if Avila had done something unethical. The worst part is that Avila had nothing to do with the incident but still had his career at stake with an unruly throw.
The whole incident was based on misunderstanding. Ordonez held out his run initially because he thought his line drive might go behind the foul line and when, after assuring the hit was neat, Ordonez did complete his, Weaver screamed wildly at the batter.
Guillen lost his temper after Weaver used foul language for his team-mate Ordonez and continued staring at the mound after unleashing Weaver for a home-run. This was when Weaver really lost it.
The six-game suspension means that Weaver is set to miss his next start, which might be costly for the Angels. Commenting about Weaver’s importance to the rotation, manager Scioscia said, "Obviously, you don't want a pitcher thrown out of a ballgame. You
don't want to lose him at any point of the season.”
Weaver has been a sensation this season. His win-loss record is noticeable at 14-5 in 23 starts and his ERA of just 1.88 suggests that he has been unplayable this season. Weaver is just eight strike-outs away from 150 this season and just 79 away from 1000
career strike-outs.
It will be interesting to see how the Angels cope without their ace pitcher.
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