Michael Conforto HBP Was An Accepted Baseball Play

With the reaction to Michael Conforto sticking out his elbow, you would’ve thought he committed treason. For some reason, just this once, trying to get hit by a pitch, is now the worst thing a player has even done.

Before getting into it, let’s take a look at the play again:

Lets call it what it is. Conforto got fooled by a pitch he thought would be more in than it was. You could see that by a function of his taking all the way (with two strikes) and his turning his back.

Because of that, a scuffling player booed earlier in the game, stuck his elbow out. He got hit with the pitch, and he fooled the home plate umpire. As a result, he took his base, and the Mets won.

With respect to the play, Conforto said, “Obviously not the way I wanted to win the ballgame. I wanted to go up there and put the ball in play, drive the ball somewhere.” (Mike Puma, New York Post).

For what is worth, Conforto claimed he wasn’t trying to get hit. In fact, he said, “With two strikes I just went into battle mode and I tend to lean over the plate when I get into battle mode.”

You can choose to believe him or not. Fact is, he did it, and he won the game. Really, he is no alone in what he did.

Craig Biggio is partially in the Hall of Fame because of his leaning into pitches. Miami Marlins owner Derek Jeter was caught faking getting hit by a pitch, and he offered no apologies.

This is a part of the game. Batters get up there trying to get on base any way they can. They’ll lean into pitches, and yes, they’ll purposefully flinch at pitches to try to get it called a ball.

We see catcher after catcher try to get better at framing pitches. Framing is designed not just to make sure a strike is a strike but also to attempt to get the borderline pitch, which should’ve been a ball, called a strike.

Here’s a hypothetical. Instead of that pitch being in the strike zone, it’s just off the plate and inside. Conforto gets out of the way, but the way Chad Wallach frames it, the umpire calls it a strike.

Is anyone vilifying Wallach? No, of course not. Will people be calling for him to be run over first chance a runner gets? That would be seen as absurd.

And yet, when Conforto did what many did before him, he’s chastised, mocked, and there are calls to drill him.

Now, no one wanted to see the game end that way. It did take some shine off the win. However, every single player in that Mets clubhouse and every single fan would rather winning on that play than losing.

That goes double for the Miami Marlins.

Let’s not forget, this is the same team who unapologetically took the field while infected with COVID. They put the season, and more importantly, lives in complete jeopardy.

Their screwing up the schedule was a factor in their making the postseason. Did they offer to forfeit the games? No. Did Don Mattingly refuse the NL Manager of the Year Award? Of course not.

Keep in mind, this is the same Mattingly who was chasing down the umpires for a replay review while Ruben Tejada was getting carted off the field because his player, Chase Utley, broke Tejada’s leg on a dirty play. Mattingly had ZERO issue winning because of that play.

Of course, he had one yesterday.

The 1986 Mets had a problem with Mike Scott scuffing balks. None of the right teams Gaylord Perry played for had an issue with his spitter. The Reds and Dodgers didn’t have an issue with Trevor Bauer‘s use of pine tar. People tip their caps to Yadier Molina and his framing.

As we know, there are certain things in baseball which are just accepted. Catchers steal strikes. Pitchers doctor balls. Batters lean into pitches. That’s the way it is.

The only time people are aggrieved is when it doesn’t benefit them. The only time the world notices is when it’s a game winning run. In the end, that’s all there is to take away from Conforto leaning into a pitch.

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