Brawl Between Yankees And Devil Rays Triggered By Girardi
Joe Girardi was basically run out of Florida by ownership for having too much of an opinion. He did not see eye to eye with the owner, and when that is the person signing your paychecks, you better make them happy.
Now Girardi has moved North and is managing the most storied franchise in baseball history, the Yankees. Girardi has found out quickly this spring that he has gone from one of the most respected managers, to one of the most hated, just because he changed uniforms.
The feisty attitude that Girardi showed last week when a Devil Ray player barreled into his catcher at home plate in an exhibition game is the sign of a manager sticking up for his player if he is in Florida.
Once he put those pinstripes on, however, that feisty attitude turned into a whine. The part of sticking up for his player turned into Yankee arrogance.
So naturally, when the two teams met on Wednesday, the Yankees retaliated for the plate collision by hitting a Devil Ray batter in the first inning.
Then, when Shelly Duncan slid into second base with his cleats up in the air, Girardi got a real feel for the hatred that everybody outside of Yankee fans feels for the team from the Bronx.
Johnny Gomes came charging in from right field and leveled Duncan, creating a bench clearing moment. Order was quickly restored, but Girardi no doubt will want to be careful next time he whines like he did last week.
The good part and bad part of this story for Girardi is the same. This was only a spring training game. Wait until the Mets, or better yet, the Red Sox come to town.
Those teams will not be interested in Girardi sticking up for his players. They will only see that he is wearing Yankee colors, and that is enough to transform him from Manager of the Year to villain in a blink of an eye.
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