Beltre To Pitchers: Don't Bean Me After Hitting A Home Run
By Josh Clark
DALLAS (105.3 The Fan) - A familiar face was in the lineup for the first time this season on Monday night out at the Globe in Arlington.
Adrian Beltre returned to the hot corner on Memorial Day after missing the club's first 51 games.
The beloved veteran was given a rousing ovation from Rangers' fans when he stepped into the batter's box for the first time.
A day later, Beltre joined the Ben and Skin Show to discuss his return to the lineup, the team's offensive struggles and more.
What was most interesting about this interview, however, was the topic of yesterday's brawl in San Francisco.
In the 8th inning with Bryce Harper up to the plate, San Francisco reliever Hunter Strickland plunked the superstar with a fastball to the hip.
Harper took exception to the beaning and charged the mound. The dugouts emptied and chaos ensued in the infield.
So why did Strickland peg Harper? Many reports pointed to the fact that Harper had hit two home runs off of Strickland previously and the Giants pitcher didn't like it.
Should that be the case, that's not a good reason at all to hit a guy. And the Rangers third baseman agrees.
When asked his opinion of the incident, Beltre said it was a sensitive issue, but he wouldn't be very pleased if he got beaned for hitting a home run.
"My opinion on this is ... why do you have to hit a hitter who hit a home run? If he's showing off then I understand that. But if he hit a home run ... why do you have to hit him? It's not like if a pitcher struck me out, I'm gonna throw my bat at him," Beltre told 105.3 The Fan. "Obviously, I'm not okay with that because I don't like to get hit ... but at the same time, I don't try to show up anybody when I hit a home run. I don't get hit a lot, but I would not like to be injured by a pitcher that is mad because I hit a home run against him."
Most players would agree with this statement from the 38-year old, but unfortunately for them and Beltre, it won't ever be eliminated from the game because of baseball's unwritten rules. Even though this particular incident is different, Beltre understands it's a part of the game.
"I think it's always gonna stay the same (on unwritten rules) ... I'm not saying who had the fault on this particular issue. You're always gonna have some hot-headed hitters and some hot-headed pitchers. And some guys are not happy when they're getting hit and instead of (the pitchers) thinking 'how am I gonna get the hitters out,' they're thinking about hitting them just because. That's the reason why it'll never go away."