Friday, March 30, 2007

On Sportsmanship

I’m at Plainsman Park for the opening game of this weekend’s Auburn-Ole Miss series. Mike Bianucci just tied the game at two with a big two-run home run in the bottom of the fourth inning.

As Bianucci crossed the plate, he turned to his teammates, who were gathered around home plate as usual, and bowed. Not a big exaggerated gesture…just put his hands together and bent forward from the waist.

It’s something AU’s players have done after almost every homer this season. And it’s been bothering me from the start.

Tom Slater worked as an assistant coach under Hal Baird at Auburn and Pat McMahon at Florida, two guys who are all about respecting the game—sometimes to the detriment of their players having fun. To his credit, Slater is a bit more relaxed than that. He encourages his players to celebrate when they or their teammates do well, which is nice to see. After all, the game should be fun for the players.

But there’s a big difference between celebrating a home run and showing up the other team. And what Bianucci did—what Auburn hitters have been doing all season—sure looks to me like showing up the other team. I don’t think Baird would have put up with it. I’m surprised Slater does.