If you’ve been on Twitter, Instagram, or another social media site I’m not yet aware of because I’m getting old, chances are you’ve seen Daniel Murphy‘s takeout slide against Chase Utley:

Here’s the thing. If you want to tell me it’s a dirty play because Murphy can’t touch second, fine. However, you must concede two points: (1) Murphy slid; and (2) Utley could’ve avoided contact by sidestepping or jumping. With that in mind, let’s look at Utley’s slide again:

To avoid any confusion, here’s a still of the point of impact:

Is this the same slide as Murphy’s?  Could Ruben Tejada protect himself?  Of course not. Even if Tejada didn’t spin, with the way Utley slid/tackled Tejada, Utley’s arms are at Tejada’s hips. His face is buried in Tejada’s abdomen. This is not a baseball play. Stop kidding yourself. 

Another point, people have picked the ONE questionable slide in Murphy’s career. Utley is a guy with a reputation for being dirty:

https://twitter.com/RosenbergMerc/status/653073357152251906

So tell me this, how are these two plays or players comparable?  If you’re answer is anything other than they’re not, your a Dodger fan, hate the Mets, or both.