Friday Morning Cram Session, 7/27
Yesterday, as you've undoubtedly heard, Logan Morrison went shopping in Nordstrom’s and got himself in a bit of trouble. LoMo encountered a woman breastfeeding her baby by the door to the store, proceeded to snap her picture with his cell phone, and post it on Twitter. Here’s the offending Tweet, which he has since deleted:
(Screengrab courtesy of the lovely and talented, and extremely competent scientist and breastfeeder Dr. Isis, whose take on this you should absolutely read)
Morrison was rightfully called out by hundreds of people, not only for having the immaturity of a 6th grader (Boobs! Milk? Gross!), but for also violating this mother’s rights by uploading her picture so his 120,000 followers could see and for essentially lobbying the store (which was following Florida state law) to change their policy of allowing mothers to breastfeed in public. This woman was not only well within her legal rights, but was doing right by her child. Doctors agree that breastfeeding is healthier than formula for infants, and that fresh milk is more nutritious than milk that’s been frozen and thawed. Breastfeeding, specifically the closeness of the child, also encourages a mother’s body to produce more milk than it otherwise would.*
*None of this is to say that every woman should breastfeed, or that women should feel badly if they can’t or if they make a different choice.
Morrison’s problem seemed to be that the woman was not shamed into finding a toilet or hiding her baby under a blanket. He continued to Tweet:
Didn’t cover her boob? Are you serious, Logan? The woman’s breast was covered by a baby. Unless this was one of those transparent babies (and TCM hates those, because he can never find them when he’s looking for them), Morrison saw far less of this woman’s breasts than he sees on a trip to the beach, at a Miami club, or in the Clevelander Bar and Swimming Pool located directly behind Logan Morrison in leftfield at Marlins Park. Gosh, no wonder Morrison is such a poor defensive outfielder with all the distraction of so many mammaries in such close proximity. He must feel incredibly uncomfortable there. Perhaps a move to a team further north, where exposed cleavage won’t be a problem for him would help his game.
Look, this isn’t so much about Logan Morrison, professional Twitter douchebag, marginal Major League ballplayer. He was a creep (staring and taking a picture, really?), and rather than apologize he’s decided to block people on Twitter and delete the Tweets in question. That’s continuing his bad behavior, but ultimately one Neanderthal isn’t the problem. This is more about a culture that simultaneously urges women to breastfeed their kids, but asks them to please go off and do it in private because it’s somehow shameful and makes a relative few, sheltered boob-a-phobes feel squicky. As though boobs are only meant for men to ogle and fondle, rather than as nourishment for babies. Women feel pressured to breastfeed in public toilets (would you want your kid to eat in the bathroom?) or under a blanket (where babies tend to get warm, and fall asleep faster, without getting full), or in their cars (uncomfortable). They get asked to leave restaurants, stores, libraries, parks, and more and that’s fundamentally wrong.
Breastfeeding is both healthy and sanitary; it’s natural and it’s perfectly normal (the vast majority of people around the world were breastfed at one point or another). As a culture we can be mature enough to accept this as a regular part of our lives without making the women in question feel like freaks by staring. Look, if you think it’s gross, you’re being immature, but that’s your problem. If you complain about it, that’s your right, but you should grow up and stop acting like you’re 12 years old. But if you work to marginalize and discriminate against women with infants, we should all work together to tell you what an asshole you’re being, to support those women, and to make it clear that you are in a drastically dwindling minority.
Pitcher of the Night: Jason Vargas, 8 IP, 1 H, 3 BB, 5 K, 1 R
Vargas is on a major hot streak since giving up 10 runs in a start on June 20. In his subsequent six starts, he's thrown 43.2 innings with a 1.65 ERA. If the Mariners do decide they want to deal him, now is the perfect time before he comes back to Earth.
Hitter of the Night: Starling Marte, 2-4, HR
Marte homered on the first pitch he saw as a Major Leaguer, which also happened to be the first pitch of the ballgame. Marte's a good prospect and could be headed for a great career, but before we get too excited over this feat portending future glory, we should note that Elias says that the last guy to do this was Kaz Matsui.
Play of the Night: Yan Gomes
Lawrie made an ok play on the ball, but look at Gomes go up high to catch his throw, and shift his body in the air to get his foot on the base. Smooth, but sadly not embeddable.
Injury of Note:
Adam Kennedy, groin
Does this count as noteworthy? Probably not.
Trade Bait of the Night: James Shields, 6 IP, 6 H, 5 BB, 10 K, 5 R
The Rays are supposedly looking to move Shields for Major League talent they can add for their playoff push, but Shields isn't doing them any favors with a disappointing year, and a pretty terrible stretch of seven starts that reaches back to June 23, in which he's given up 62 hits in 45.1 innings with a 6.15 ERA.
Ephemera
Orioles: Chris Davis, 2-4, HR, 2B, R, 4 RBI
Davis has hit ok this year (.258/.303/.458), but given how limited he is defensively (both in terms of where he can play, and his skill at those spots), he's been well below replacement level. That the O's keep running him out to LF and RF isn't helping matters.
Orioles: Jim Thome, 1-3, BB, 2 K, R
The acquisition of Thome is part of the reason Davis has been relegated to the OF. And really, Thome isn't hitting any better (.262/.351/.400) than Davis. He is about 14x as awesome, however, and he's certainly acquitting himself well for a 41 year old.
Blue Jays: Edwin Encarnacion, 2-4, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI
Encarnacion wallups his 27th homer, and is hitting .299/.393/.591. Can you imagine where the Blue Jays would be without him? And think about the expectations going into next year with him and Bautista (and presumably a pitching staff) healthy.
Cardinals: David Freese, 3-3, 2 R, 2 RBI
It's not just his DUI, but TCM has never really warmed up to Freese. It probably had to do with all the injuries that made him seem unreliable. But since the start of July, he's hitting .460/.570/.587, with a .549 BABIP. That'll play, but he only has one homer in that span, however.
Indians: Travis Hafner, 1-4, HR
He's hitting .200/.279/.455 since coming off the DL on July 4 to drop him down to .230/.352/.444 on the year. How quickly do you think the Indians will decline his $13 million option for next year? 30 seconds after the World Series ends, or do you think they can get it in faster than that?
Tigers: Justin Verlander, 7 IP, 9 H, 2 BB, 4 K, 5 R
A rare clunker for Verlander, who presumably has to offer up one fo these starts every now and again to give other teams hope.
Nationals: Edwin Jackson, 7 IP, 8 H, 1 BB, 4 K, 0 R
Jackson's biggest problem early in his career was his control (he used to walk around 11% of batters faced). But since 2009, he's really had a handle on it, and in the last two years, he's walked just 7.2% of batters, well below league average. A different pitcher now, he's been a great acquisition for the Nats, and should probably be considered a safe bet this winter, when he'll be the 2nd best pitcher on the free agent market.
Mets: Matt Harvey, 5.1 IP, 3 H, 3 BB, 11 K, 0 R
Harvey was great as he broke the Mets record for most Ks in a MLB debut. The Major League record is 15 Ks, held by both JR Richard and Karl Spooner.
Mariners: Dustin Ackley, 2-3, 2B, R, 2 BB
Ackley has been a major disappointment this year (.223/.306/.322), to the point where some people would like to see him shipped down to Tacoma with Justin Smoak. But his approach at the plate is not bad. His walk rate (10.7%) is well above league average, and his strikeout rate is barely above it. Plus, he adds value as a good defensive second baseman. Really, the biggest problem seems to be bad luck.
