ARLINGTON, Texas — It didn't take long for baseball's unwritten rules to come to the forefront of headlines this season. In the sixth inning of Tuesday's game between the San Francisco Giants and San Diego Padres, Giants infielder Mauricio Dubón hit a bunt single while the Giants still had a nine-run lead.
Padres manager Bob Melvin and first baseman Eric Hosmer were not happy that Dubón violated one of baseball's unwritten rules and voiced their opinion during and after the game.
"I definitely told him how I felt, how we felt about it," Hosmer said. "He said it was a sign given to him by their staff. I just told him I think you've got to be a little bit smarter in that situation. You've been playing professional ball for a good amount of time obviously if you're at this level. You've got to be smarter than that."
Giants manager (and former Texas Rangers player) Gabe Kapler defended his player's decision to bunt for a hit, saying it is part of the team's strategy to win a series.
"Our goal is not exclusively to win one game in a series. It's to try to win the entire series. Sometimes, that means trying to get a little deeper into the opposition's 'pen. I understand that many teams don't love that strategy. And I get why. It's something that we talked about as a club before the season and that we were comfortable going forward with that strategy. It's not to be disrespectful in any way. It's because we feel very cool and strategic. It's the best way to win a series. When I say cool, I mean calm. We're not emotional about it. We're not trying to hurt anybody."
In August 2020, Rangers manager Chris Woodward was thrust into the dispute over baseball's unwritten rules when he publicly took issue with San Diego's Fernando Tatis Jr. swinging at a 3-0 pitch with a seven-run lead, which resulted in a home run. The Rangers lost the game, 14-4.
"I think there's a lot of unwritten rules that are constantly being challenged in today's game," Woodward said at the time. "I didn't like it, personally. You're up by seven in the eighth inning; it's typically not a good time to swing 3-0 It's kind of the way we were all raised in the game. But, like I said, the norms are being challenged on a daily basis, so—just because I don't like it doesn't mean it's not right. (But) I don't think we liked it as a group."
Fast forward 20 months, and Woodward has a different approach regarding the unwritten rules of baseball.
"I've completely changed my opinion on a lot of these things," Woodward told reporters Thursday. "And before that moment, two years ago, I had changed my opinion on a lot of things leading up to that in a lot of ways. I know it sounded like I was old school that day. But, I don't care anymore. I think the game needs a change. It needs to get rid of some of these things.
"I can admit it now looking back in hindsight. I shouldn't care. It shouldn't have mattered."
Woodward talked at length about why the game should change. Among the reasons laid out, he talked about how defenses consistently shift against hitters, regardless of the score. It doesn't matter if a team is leading or trail by one run or 10 runs, hitters like Corey Seager or former Ranger Joey Gallo will always be shifted by the opposing team.
Knowing bunting is part of Dubón's game, Woodward defended the infielder's decision to bunt for a hit, regardless of the score.
"If you're gaining an advantage (by shifting), why can't we keep our advantage or make you get rid of that advantage by playing baseball? So if they're allowed to shift but we're not allowed to bunt, that doesn't make any sense to me," Woodward said.
The Rangers skipper also reinforced Kapler's strategy of doing everything possible to eat away at the opposing bullpen.
"(It's) a strategic advantage for us," Woodward said. "We saw that in Toronto. The first game, even though we lost, we got into their bullpen. They had to use so many guys over and over again. And we were up 7-0 and lost, right? So you gotta keep pushing. You gotta keep trying to score runs.
"These guys have careers at stake in some regards. So I completely changed my opinion on a lot of those little unwritten rules. I just want to clarify that. It's still gonna be a hot topic because there's still gonna be old school guys. It's in their DNA, which I get. It was in my DNA. ... Just, who cares? We're still playing baseball. That's got to be the bottom line."
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