The Selig Test

Thus far this season, two Indians starters (and no other pitchers) have been suspended for "intentionally" throwing at hitters.

Ubaldo Jimenez was suspended 6 games after hitting his BFF Troy Tulowitzki in his final spring training start (in an inning where he walked two other batters).

Jeanmar Gomez got a five-game suspension for hitting Mike Moustakas in retaliation after Jonathan Sanchez hit Shin-Soo Choo (a season after he broke Choo's hand).

Gomez's HBP was certainly intentional; he threw behind Moustakas before plunking him with his second effort. Jimenez has the personality that suggests he threw at Tulowitzki, but it was not abundantly clear he intended the pitch to hit him (his real crime was reacting the way he did, which suggested if he didn't intend to hit him, he was still very comfortable iwth it). Hamels acknowledged his intent, saying "I was trying to hit him, I'm not going to deny it", but says "I'm not going to injure a guy."

Really?

No...really???

I should explain some things to Cole Hamels. First, force = mass times acceleration. A baseball isn't very massive, but it moves pretty fast, especially when you, protector of the Ark of the Baseball Covenant, throw a fastball. While you were "not going to injure anyone", you were hurling a baseball at a rate of 93 mph. That has a phenomenally good chance of ... injuring someone. If you don't believe me, well, ask Shin-Soo Choo, David Freese, Jeff Bagwell, or the players who broke hands or wrists from hit by pitches. Ask Ray Chapman, Tony Conigliaro, Kirby Puckett, Marlon Byrd, or any number of people who suffered concussions or worse from being hit in the head. And yes, you were a gentleman, you threw at his back. But hey, you may remember, o, lord high keeper of the faith, when your Phillies legend predecessor Mike Schmidt got ribs broken when he got hit by a pitch.

Second, you are really not the guy who should be sending a lecture about honor and "how the game works". "The honorable game" you're protecting here doesn't abide by pitchers who show up their teammates when they commit errors. Old school baseball would consist of you having to spend your offseasons working at real jobs, or at the very least, not demanding in excess of $20 million a year. And I think the next time you see Bob Feller posing with a WWE champion would have been the first.

Despite living in Washington, I can't say I'm a big fan of Bryce Harper. I will say that for all his arrogance over the past few years, since he got to the Majors, he's been a class act and has been incredibly boring off the field. And if you hit him with a pitch, so be it. Things happen. Appointing himself baseball's honorary night watchman should have gotten Hamels ejected; it had better get him suspended longer than Jimenez. Otherwise Jimenez's next hit by pitch should be a called shot. That way he can make it back in time for his next start.

I have no confidence Selig will pass this test. But if he is actually interested in playing fair, instead of just suspending only Indians, Hamels should have a couple starts off.