Warning: Unwritten baseball rules ahead!
It's that time of year in baseball. Teams out of contention -- yeah, I'm talking to you, Red Sox and Texas Rangers -- are just trying to get to Game 162 without incurring additional injuries and then head home for the offseason.
Along the way, with the games of little consequence, some players are in pursuit of some personal milestones.
The other night, Eduardo Rodriguez got credit for a win despite being shelled for seven runs in five innings. The only reason Rodriguez was still in the game was a chance to qualify for his 19th win, which in turn would allow him to go for No. 20 on Sunday.
It got dicey for a while Tuesday night and at one point, Alex Cora went out to warn Rodriguez that the manager's patience had its limits. With two on and two runs in, Rodriguez would be left in for one more hitter. Get the next guy, or you're gone, was Cora's message.
Fortunately for Rodriguez's sake, it all worked out. He got the final out, qualified for the win and now has a chance to reach his goal Sunday.
While some may have been a little put off by a team standing on its head in order to help one player reach a personal goal, the Sox never stopped playing hard nor forgot the object of the game.
Fast forward to Thursday, when Texas starter Mike Minor was trying to get his 200th strikeout of the season. Stuck at 199 after eight innings, having already thrown 120 pitches, he was sent out for the ninth by manager Chris Woodward.
So far, so good.
Sandy Leon flied out to center for the first out, leaving Minor to smile and shrug as he looked toward the dugout. Next was Chris Owings who, with one strike, hit a foul popup between home and first. Rangers first baseman Ronald Guzman came racing in to catch the ball in foul territory, only to have Minor yell at him to let the ball drop. Perplexed, Guzman did as he was told.
Mike Minor told Guzman to drop this foul ball so he could still have a chance at his 200th strikeout of the season pic.twitter.com/PfP7E1ZPma
โ MyBookie Sportsbook (@betmybookie) September 26, 2019