The Phillies aren't making the playoffs, and they have just an outside shot at finishing the season over .500. It shouldn't be news when it comes to the players they start or bench. Unless, that is, that player is Philadelphia icon (semi-icon?) Jimmy Rollins and he's benched because he doesn't run out a pop-up. That's some good fodder.
Jimmy Rollins Benched For Hustle-Related Failures
Jimmy Rollins was pulled from Thursday’s game because he failed to run out an infield pop-up.
The story from Philly.com:
It was just two weeks ago that Charlie Manuel met with Jimmy Rollins about his failure to run out a groundball against the Marlins. So when the manager saw Rollins give less than full effort on a pop fly that was dropped by Mets pitcher Jon Niese in the sixth inning on Thursday, he took the next step. After the inning, Manuel pulled Rollins from the game, replacing him at shortstop with Michael Martinez.
When it comes to not hustling, there will be more egregious offenses:
Of note is that a) second base was uncovered, and b) Manuel had already talked to Rollins this month about running plays. Still, if you watch a baseball game today, you’ll probably see a player do this without getting pulled from the game. Seems more like a straw that broke the Manuel’s back than an especially disgraceful play.
And when Rollins returns to the lineup tomorrow (or maybe the next day), we’ll forget all about this.
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