Rougned Odor doesn’t seem apologetic about punching Jose Bautista
Texas Rangers second baseman Rougned Odor is likely facing a lengthy suspension from Major League Baseball following his role in the massive brawl with the Toronto Blue Jays. Odor was at the center of the situation, as he landed a punch directly on outfielder Jose Bautista’s jaw.
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Given his role in the incident, and the number of games he could miss, it was somewhat reasonable to expect Odor to back down from his actions during the fight. Maybe if he apologized and said he was wrong to punch Bautista, he would receive a shorter suspension.
That’s not going to happen. Odor made his first comments since the brawl, telling Gerry Fraley of the Dallas Morning News that the punch and the forthcoming suspension are “part of the game.”
Odor also explained why he reacted the way he did during the brawl.
“I can tell when somebody is coming hard to second base,” Odor said. “I just tried to protect myself.”
Odor said that after the slide, he sensed Bautista was going to continue the issue. The thought that Bautista was about to throw a punch quickly entered Odor’s mind.
“He was standing there after the slide, looking at me,” Odor said. “He was close to me. I said ‘What’s this?'”
According to Fraley, Odor later added that he respects Bautista and considers the issues between the two teams to be resolved at this time.
That last part is somewhat unbelievable considering he just punched Bautista in the face. It’s also a weird thing to say after he stood by his actions.
Look, we’re not saying we expected Odor to be sorry and apologize for hitting Bautista, but his response to the situation is a bit surprising.
Some think Odor is a dirty player given his reaction to the slide, and the fact that he’s been involved in other fights during his baseball career. He could have taken this moment to tell people he let the emotions get the best of him, and that he’s not really a hot-head. He didn’t opt to go that route.
And that’s fine. Odor doesn’t have to say things in order to please the public. Emotions were high during the game, he was angry about Bautista nearly taking out his legs and retaliated in a way he saw fit. He probably should have handled things differently, but it’s too late for that now.
[Related: Will Rougned Odor receive the longest fight suspension in MLB history?]
Issuing a false apology isn’t going to solve any of this. Sure, it might make Odor look better to the public, but he’s made it clear he doesn’t care what they think. Odor likely has the backing of his teammates and, to him, that’s probably all that matters.
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Chris Cwik is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik
