seahorse
08-26-01, 06:29 AM
http://dailynews.netscape.com/mynsnews/story.tmpl?table=n&cat=51401&id=200108252311000135797
SEATTLE (AP) - Al Martin
of the Seattle Mariners was
asked about the absurdity
of two baseball teams
almost getting into a brawl
over a pair of earrings.
``It doesn't even sound
right,'' Martin said with a
smile.
But it came close to
happening in the ninth
inning of the Cleveland
Indians-Mariners game on
Saturday.
As Arthur Rhodes began warming up to replace the injured Kazuhiro Sasaki,
the Indians' Omar Vizquel asked the umpires to have Rhodes take his
diamond earrings off. He complained about the glare from the sun.
``It was blinding,'' Vizquel said. ``It was distracting.''
Rhodes, who has worn earrings for two seasons in Seattle, became incensed.
``I told the umpire I've been wearing them the whole year,'' he said. ``So
why should I take them out?''
No punches were thrown, but the teams came menacingly onto the field and
it looked to third-base umpire Tim McClelland that mayhem might happen.
Although Rhodes eventually took his earrings out and handed them to
pitching coach Bryan Price, McClelland ejected Rhodes.
``It became a shouting match between Vizquel and Rhodes,'' McClelland
said. ``To stop anything further, I asked Arthur to leave.''
After the game, Rhodes was still unhappy with the smallish Vizquel,
Cleveland's stellar shortstop.
``A little short hitter like him,'' he said with a snort. ``A little midget. I'm not
worried about him. I'll go right at him if I face him again. A buck 25. You
think I'm scared of him?''
Vizquel said he couldn't understand why Rhodes became so testy.
``I don't know why he acted the way he acted,'' he said. ``I think it's in the
rules anyway that you're not supposed to wear any jewelry out there. He
started pointing at my head. He was pointing at me like he was going to hit
me or something.''
Rhodes said he planned to wear his earrings when he pitched again, but
didn't have them on when he talked to reporters.
``I got them put up,'' he said. ``They're on probation.''
Martin scored the winning run in Seattle's 3-2 victory as a pinch-runner with
no outs in the 11th inning on John Rocker's throwing error. He managed to
put some humor in the bizarre day.
;)
SEATTLE (AP) - Al Martin
of the Seattle Mariners was
asked about the absurdity
of two baseball teams
almost getting into a brawl
over a pair of earrings.
``It doesn't even sound
right,'' Martin said with a
smile.
But it came close to
happening in the ninth
inning of the Cleveland
Indians-Mariners game on
Saturday.
As Arthur Rhodes began warming up to replace the injured Kazuhiro Sasaki,
the Indians' Omar Vizquel asked the umpires to have Rhodes take his
diamond earrings off. He complained about the glare from the sun.
``It was blinding,'' Vizquel said. ``It was distracting.''
Rhodes, who has worn earrings for two seasons in Seattle, became incensed.
``I told the umpire I've been wearing them the whole year,'' he said. ``So
why should I take them out?''
No punches were thrown, but the teams came menacingly onto the field and
it looked to third-base umpire Tim McClelland that mayhem might happen.
Although Rhodes eventually took his earrings out and handed them to
pitching coach Bryan Price, McClelland ejected Rhodes.
``It became a shouting match between Vizquel and Rhodes,'' McClelland
said. ``To stop anything further, I asked Arthur to leave.''
After the game, Rhodes was still unhappy with the smallish Vizquel,
Cleveland's stellar shortstop.
``A little short hitter like him,'' he said with a snort. ``A little midget. I'm not
worried about him. I'll go right at him if I face him again. A buck 25. You
think I'm scared of him?''
Vizquel said he couldn't understand why Rhodes became so testy.
``I don't know why he acted the way he acted,'' he said. ``I think it's in the
rules anyway that you're not supposed to wear any jewelry out there. He
started pointing at my head. He was pointing at me like he was going to hit
me or something.''
Rhodes said he planned to wear his earrings when he pitched again, but
didn't have them on when he talked to reporters.
``I got them put up,'' he said. ``They're on probation.''
Martin scored the winning run in Seattle's 3-2 victory as a pinch-runner with
no outs in the 11th inning on John Rocker's throwing error. He managed to
put some humor in the bizarre day.
;)