There is a line, Many times we see the line and wonder how close can we get before we cross that line. I know and love the game of baseball. Some of my favorite players have been in some of the biggest brawls and done other behavior I wasn’t proud of but I understood it was apart of the game. I like a guy who is going to beat the crap out of the water cooler or break a bat, it shows a passion. There is an ugly side to baseball, the side where you hit a player after your player gets hit. I get it. I am not saying you should do it. I just understand that this is what happens.

THIS JUST IN: Chase Utley suspended for Games 3 and 4 of NLDS for his slide on Tejada on Saturday, can appeal. pic.twitter.com/GVtQmsFbPQ

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) October 12, 2015

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On Saturday Chase Utley, did what I thought was the dumbest slide ever, it looked like the forgot to slide he started his slide so late but then he never touched the bag. As I write this I was getting ready to say that Chase didn’t need to be suspended that the play looked dumb rather than dirty until I this video, and watched the replay.Sorry Chase, it was dirty.

AS I wrote earlier there is a line, and we all see it and sometimes we don’t mean to cross it but it was crossed that day. As Utley is coming up to 2nd, he starts his slide extremely late and never touches the bag, but upon further review, he was coming right up to a shortstop whose back was to him, my natural instinct would be to get out of the way, it didn’t look like Utley was getting out of the way, I think he went head on.
Frank Thomas on FS1 was upset that this kind of ruling would be done in the playoffs, having not seen it, I took sympathy with Frank, I mean this is a lousy time to change the rules, We barely have catchers following the “Buster Posey Rule” I understood, but then there is Joe Torre.
I have much respect for Joe Torre, he is an expert at baseball and is a clear level headed guy. He understands the pressure of playoffs and he decided to make this ruling to suspend Chase Utley.
Utley is going to appeal and sent an apology out to Ruben Tejada, but he keeps saying his intent was not to injure. I do believe that. I don’t think anyone wakes up and intends to hurt someone else. What makes this play so bad is the Shortstop Tejada had his back to Utley and Utley could see that and kept going.