To the Victorino Goes the Blame

I like Shane Victorino. He plays hard and plays the right way. He's fast, athletic and exciting.

But he did not need to run over Brian McCann today.

If you haven't seen the replays, you will. It is a brutal collision on a play at the plate. The relay throw and Victorino were racing to home. Brian McCann fielded the throw cleanly, moved to tag the Phillie runner and was then knocked silly as Victorino lowered his helmet into McCann's head.

Before you tell me this is part of the game, consider this: Brian McCann was not blocking home plate. He fielded the throw and then dove toward the plate to tag what he assumed was a sliding Victorino. The play was a race to the plate which did not necessitate a collision. Beyond that, Victorino led with his helmet rather than his shoulder or forearm. He used his head as a battering ram to jar the ball loose from McCann, only instead of hitting glove he hit McCann's noggin. The Braves catcher has a concussion as a result of the play.

Victorino was rightfully concerned about the play, but that doesn't excuse it. There was no reason to plow over the Braves All-Star catcher. There was no reason to give the guy a concussion; we have all learned from Troy Aikman to Chris Benoit how devastating concussions can be to the human body and brain.

It makes no sense to me that throwing a baseball near someone's head is brawl-worthy, but running over a defenseless catcher is good baseball. It isn't. It is unnecessary and unfair to the catcher.

Here is hoping that when the Phillies visit Atlanta in September, the play is not forgotten. That will be good baseball.