He's one of the most hated players around the league, and I understand the the thought process behind every fan that boos him when he steps to the plate or is introduced to the crowd. He is A.J. Pierzynski and he may have just saved the White Sox season on Sunday afternoon.The Sox were on the verge of being swept at home for the first time this season and possibly falling even further behind the Twins when some heads up thinking by Pierzynski saved the day. After Paul Konerko singled home Brian Anderson with two outs in the ninth inning and sent the game into extra innings, A.J. led off the bottom of the tenth with a single.
That's when the odyssey of A.J. began. First he showed once again that he's the smartest base runner the White Sox have by tagging up from first on a deep fly to center by Carlos Quentin, and getting into scoring position with one out. Then a few seconds later he became the dumbest base runner in the world when he took off for third on a Jermaine Dye grounder to short.
A.J. was quickly caught in a rundown when the gears in his brain began grinding. There's no way a slow-footed catcher was going to be able to outrun a bunch of middle infielders, so he needed a new plan.
So while A.J. was running back and forth, he figured out an escape. After Willy Aybar chased him back to second from third base, Aybar flipped the ball to Jason Bartlett, but as he passed Pierzynski in the basepath, A.J. stuck his elbow out for Aybar to run into.
Pierzynski then promptly fell to the ground and was tagged out. Only he was ruled safe after the second base umpire, Doug Eddings, ruled that Aybar had interfered with him. You aren't allowed to touch a base runner unless you have the ball in your hands, and that's what Eddings saw Aybar do, so Pierzynski was ruled safe and awarded third base.
After an intentional walk to Jim Thome to load the bases, Alexei Ramirez lined a single into right field and Pierzynski crossed home plate with the winning run. All of a sudden, the Sox had gone from being swept at home to back in first place in the AL Central, all thanks to the cheating smart thinking Pierzynski.
Oh, and if you're wondering why Doug Eddings' name sounds familiar when it comes to A.J, there's a reason for it. Guess who the home plate umpire was during Game 2 of the 2005 ALCS when A.J. Pierzynski literally stole first base, and helped send the Sox on an 8-game win streak that ended with a World Series trophy.
Yep, that's right, it was Doug Eddings. Chicago's favorite patsy umpire.
Comments (Page 1 of 1)
So A J Pierzynski is praised for cheating? nothing was done about it. Everyone saw it, the umpires even went along with it. Baseball needs instant replay real bad, because you can bet the umpires ( in my opinion ) are not doing their job. Its a shame the media can praise a guy for cheating, and blast a guy for a lack of effort rarely.
A J Pierzynski cheated and got away with it, and the umpires let him get away with it, hey, whats going on? You might not let me post this, but the umpires need to be double checked, ( even on balls and strikes as well ). Seems as though its up to them who wins ballgames.
Umpire Doug Eddings, has a thick head and cannot get things right, at least in his storied relationship with AJ Pierzynski. The lame brained explanation, even by Eddings' cohorts in crime, seems to reason that Eddings threw AJ a kiss and gift of third base because a defending third baseman "touched" AJ in the run-down AJ was stupid enough to generate. This is something Eddings does not want to happen to his favored AJ.The defender cannot touch the base runner is the apparent rule. But it's OK that base runner AJ, an Eddings' repeat favorite, goes out of his path to elbow the the defender, do an ass-over-tea-kettle prat fall and thus earn the gift of third base. The door is open on run-downs; the new Eddings/ AJ rewrite of the rule is now in force: runner tackles the defender, is taggrd out by another defender and runner is awarded the base because the defender comes into contact with the base runner. This Eddings/ J--- A-- (opps!) /AJ duo wins the fresh cow pie award for the 2008 season. Equal halves to each.
Bill Laimbeer was one called "The Biggest Agitator In The NBA."
A.J. Pierzynski is the Bill Laimbeer of Baseball.
Look for a rule change in the off-season.
Wilson, it's not cheating if it's within the rules.
Organizations TEACH this stuff to their players while they're still in the minor leagues.
For the record, it's not cheating. It's Baseball 101, a basic
technique drilled into players the day they enter the Minor League. AJ just happens to be extremely good at it. Hate him if you want to, but don't condemn him for breaking rules that exist only in your head.
If anybody should be blamed here, it is Alybar for not leaving the base path before overtaking Pierzynski. And don't blame Eddings for following the rules, I wish more umpires would. By the way, have you noticed how catchers now tag batters out on dropped third strikes. No rule change needed, just observe the ones in place.
If this was any other baserunner people wouldn't be calling him a cheater. As its been said already Willy Aybar is the one who goofed. Pierzynski merely took advantage of Aybar's mistake and Eddings had no choice but call it as he saw it within the rules.
Its plays like this is what makes baseball interesting, and I dread the possibility of instant replay. It will ruin baseball as we know it.