Joba Chamberlain has turned the baseball world upside down since he hit the major league scene at the end of the 2007 season. As everyone has scene, he has a blistering slider and a fiery fastball however, his fastball is not the only thing fiery about him.
Apparently, Chamberlain has rubbed a few people wrong showing his emotions on the mound. Chamberlain is a very animated pitcher, and has quickly been known to pump his fist fiercely on the mound after a strikeout or big play.
There is nothing wrong with showing emotion. If you didn't show your emotion, you are not human. Besides, look at sports like soccer and hockey where the team ambushes each other after a goal or in football where taunting is all part of the game. Trash talk is all part of the the game of football, soccer players run around the field like being chased by a rabid dog and tear their shirts off and hockey players often slide on their knees on the ice in celebration.
Ok, baseball is a little bit of a different sport, but it is the same in that it is all just a pure burst of emotion that was being held in.
What Chamberlain does really is not big deal. He makes a bit of a spin and pumps his arm. Does that sound similar to any other pitchers? It should. Think about Jonathan Papelbon of the Boston Red Sox. He is another intense athlete. And Chamberlain is like a mild mouse compared to the wild antics of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim's closer; K-Rod who gyrates seemingly uncontrollably on the mound.
So, where do you draw the line? If anyone is showing anyone up, look at players like Manny Ramirez, Ken Griffey Jr., and the great Barry Bonds. These three men in particular are know for dropping the bat and starring at their home-runs. That is showing up your opposition.
If they run around the bases animatedly, vigorously giving high fives to their base coaches, raise their arm in celebration or point to God, that is pure emotion. It is not emotion to drop your bat and stare at a moon shot that you know is out of the park. That is a conscious effort.
So, why do the Griffey's and Bonds' and Ramirez's get away with it? Is it because they established icons? Is it because the are loved? Ok, that doesn't apply to Bonds who is jeered anywhere accept in San Fransisco. But is it because they are chasing history? In Ramirez's case, it is chalked up to "Manny being Manny." Why do these players get away with it time after time after time? Personally I think it is because they are batters. For some reason they get a lot more leeway than pitchers do. It is something I will never really understand.
What happened to the old school way of playing? In the past, these players would have to be on their toes because they were going to have to duck a fastball aimed at their head and they knew and everyone in the stadium knew it.
As a player, you need to to be smart. There is a difference between emotion and showboating. There is a difference between being happy and being a show off.
Chamberlain, like Papelbon and K-Rod are guys with true emotion. It may rub people the wrong way, however Michael Kay earlier this season spoke to Frank Thomas the day after Camberlain struck him out in a big situation and pumped his fist on the mound. Kay said that Thomas said if he got a hit that Chamberlain couldn't have pumped his fist.
That is a great and mature attitude to have. You do your job as a batter, you can jog the bases with enthusiasm, however, if you strike out and get out at a big time in the game, don't be surprised or angered to see it on the other end of the field, 60 feet 6 inches away.
If batters don't want to see animation on a pitchers face, do something about it by getting a hit and don't give them a reason to celebrate. You never see a batter celebrate after a strike-out. Do you?
Apparently, Chamberlain has rubbed a few people wrong showing his emotions on the mound. Chamberlain is a very animated pitcher, and has quickly been known to pump his fist fiercely on the mound after a strikeout or big play.
There is nothing wrong with showing emotion. If you didn't show your emotion, you are not human. Besides, look at sports like soccer and hockey where the team ambushes each other after a goal or in football where taunting is all part of the game. Trash talk is all part of the the game of football, soccer players run around the field like being chased by a rabid dog and tear their shirts off and hockey players often slide on their knees on the ice in celebration.
Ok, baseball is a little bit of a different sport, but it is the same in that it is all just a pure burst of emotion that was being held in.
What Chamberlain does really is not big deal. He makes a bit of a spin and pumps his arm. Does that sound similar to any other pitchers? It should. Think about Jonathan Papelbon of the Boston Red Sox. He is another intense athlete. And Chamberlain is like a mild mouse compared to the wild antics of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim's closer; K-Rod who gyrates seemingly uncontrollably on the mound.
So, where do you draw the line? If anyone is showing anyone up, look at players like Manny Ramirez, Ken Griffey Jr., and the great Barry Bonds. These three men in particular are know for dropping the bat and starring at their home-runs. That is showing up your opposition.
If they run around the bases animatedly, vigorously giving high fives to their base coaches, raise their arm in celebration or point to God, that is pure emotion. It is not emotion to drop your bat and stare at a moon shot that you know is out of the park. That is a conscious effort.
So, why do the Griffey's and Bonds' and Ramirez's get away with it? Is it because they established icons? Is it because the are loved? Ok, that doesn't apply to Bonds who is jeered anywhere accept in San Fransisco. But is it because they are chasing history? In Ramirez's case, it is chalked up to "Manny being Manny." Why do these players get away with it time after time after time? Personally I think it is because they are batters. For some reason they get a lot more leeway than pitchers do. It is something I will never really understand.
What happened to the old school way of playing? In the past, these players would have to be on their toes because they were going to have to duck a fastball aimed at their head and they knew and everyone in the stadium knew it.
As a player, you need to to be smart. There is a difference between emotion and showboating. There is a difference between being happy and being a show off.
Chamberlain, like Papelbon and K-Rod are guys with true emotion. It may rub people the wrong way, however Michael Kay earlier this season spoke to Frank Thomas the day after Camberlain struck him out in a big situation and pumped his fist on the mound. Kay said that Thomas said if he got a hit that Chamberlain couldn't have pumped his fist.
That is a great and mature attitude to have. You do your job as a batter, you can jog the bases with enthusiasm, however, if you strike out and get out at a big time in the game, don't be surprised or angered to see it on the other end of the field, 60 feet 6 inches away.
If batters don't want to see animation on a pitchers face, do something about it by getting a hit and don't give them a reason to celebrate. You never see a batter celebrate after a strike-out. Do you?
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