The Balance Between Playing Hard and Playing Dirty
The LA Dodgers' Chase Utley slid hard into Mets shortstop Ruben Tejada Saturday night, breaking the shortstop's leg, breaking up the double play and ruining the Mets chances of winning game two of the National League Division Series. Mets fans were enraged; Utley was suspended for two games.
George Vecsey, former sports columnist for the New York Times and author of the book Eight World Cups: My Journey through the Beauty and Dark Side of Soccer (St. Martin's Griffin, 2014), discusses last night's Mets win (they now lead the series 2-1), the takeout slide Utley used, whether he was playing dirty or just playing hard, and whether MLB should take a harder stance against dangerous plays like that.
@BrianLehrer @georgevecsey @WNYC The line is simple; injury or not. If no injury, Utley is lauded for hard, veteran play.
— James McCarthy (@JamesTMcCarthy) October 13, 2015
@BrianLehrer @georgevecsey If Tejada was injured on a legit hard slide, it would have been tragic but acceptable. This was not that.
— Jarkowsky (@jarkowsky) October 13, 2015
