The media is making a big deal about Derek Jeter acting like he got hit by a pitch and "fooling" the umpire last night in the New York Yankees - Tampa Bay Rays game last night. They are calling him a cheater and charging him with poor sportsmanship. This is ridiculous and I couldn't disagree more.
In a sport that has officials, an athlete has no obligation to tell an umpire or an official if they have made the wrong call or not. For example, in the Cleveland Indians - Detroit Tigers game earlier this year when the Tigers' pitcher Armando Galarraga beat the Indians Jason Donald to the bag and was ruled safe and ruining his Perfect Game, you didn't hear ANYONE get on Donald for not admitting to the umpire that he was actually out. Jeter's job is to get on base any way he can. If it meant acting a little to sway the umpire into making a call, then you do it. Every professional athlete has made some attempt in their careers to deceive an umpire or an official, that's the way it is. It's not unsportsmanlike, it's part of the game. It would be different if they were playing an individualized sport where policing yourselves is the right thing to do. Team sports is not like that and there is no place for athletes to correct officials & umpires calls, it's simply not their job and they should not be expected to do it.
Good assessment and I agree with you. But I think Jeter went a little far with his acting.
ReplyDeleteHe had the medical staff come out and take a look. I cant say he technically did anything wrong but it seems to me that he went a little too far in trying to convince the ump.
One way to look at this is in the form of types of lying. There is outright lying, clearly saying or showing that you are hurt. And then there is lying by omission. Jason Donald was omitting what may or may not have happened. While Jeter was actively lying to convince others that he had been hit.