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Friday, June 26, 2015

Temper Temper: Sports Tantrums of Spring

It's officially summer.  The hot temperatures are here, but the hot tempers have been burning all spring.  The list from this spring is a little unusual.  No hockey players are on the list, but golf and the beautiful game both make an appearance.  Enjoy!

1.  Gentleman's Game.  Golf is different than any other major professional sport because, for the most part, the players officiate themselves.  At the WGC Cadillac Match Play Championships in early May, Keegan Bradley and Miguel Angel Jimenez had a strong disagreement over the placement of a relief drop.  Bradley's caddy gets in the act, as well.  These guys don't come to blows or anything, but it's a pretty unusual site to see professional golfers jawing nose-to-nose on the course.



2.  The People's Elbow.  Matthew Dellavedova, a backup guard for the Cleveland Cavaliers, is a pesky competitor.  In Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Al Horford of the Atlanta Hawks had reached his fill of the fiery Aussie.  This play was the source of a lot of debate on sports talkshows the next morning.  But, here's how I see it.  Horford and Dellavedova get tangled up going for a loose ball.  With a little assist from Horford, Dellavedova falls over a Hawks player and lands on Horford's leg.  Horford responded to the dangerous play by upping the ante.  Horford delivers the People's Elbow to Dellavedova's head.  Horford was ejected for his troubles.  Atlanta lost the game and the series.



3.  Dirty Girl.  I'm pretty old school.  I believe there is a place for physical intimidation even in high school sports.  But, this catcher in the Texas 4A softball state championship game definitely crossed the line.  Not once but twice.  The thing I don't understand about this video is why the opposing team didn't take any action to retaliate.  Rest assured that if this happened in a game in the coal region, punches would be thrown.



4.  Snapped Like a Twig.  Sure, it's been done before.  But, anytime a guy breaks a bat over his knee, it deserves to be in the spotlight.  Yasiel Puig joined the bat breaking club on June 15, 2015 in a game against the Texas Rangers.



5.  No Respect for Authority.  This makes an appearance on the list because it is unique.  There is nothing unusual about players arguing with a referee about a call.  But, Clint Dempsey of the Seattle Sounders literally tears up a call he disliked.  After a teammate is given a red card and sent off the pitch, Dempsey takes the notebook out of the referee's hand and tears it up.  Dempsey was rewarded with an ejection of his own.



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