“Fans: Once a cheater, Always a cheater”- MLB apprehends Martin Maldonado for attempting to play with an illegal bat gifted by Albert Pujols
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Martin Maldonado was the focal point once as the MLB 2022 World Series gets underway with a bit of a hiccup when Eric Burton fumbled up the national anthem before Game 1 between the Philadelphia Phillies and Houston Astros could begin. However, soon enough, Eric’s foolish act was all in the past and Martin Maldonado became the center of attraction because of the “bat” he chose to play with.
The reportedly illegal bat was gifted to Martin by the future Hall of Fame and legend Albert Pujols who used it himself when plying his trade in the MLB, mainly for St. Louis Cardinals. One might wonder why was it legal for Pujols to use it in the same league which critcised and made Maldonado change his bat.
The answer being that Albert Pujols was using the bat before 2010 when the new rules about the barrel size were issued. Keeping in mind Pujol’s legacy, MLB permitted Pujols to continue using his bat, thus making quite an exception for the slugger who made his name and fame through MLB.
Martin Maldonado had different thoughts regarding the incident
Houston Astros were called upon by the MLB for their cheating scandal half a decade ago and now they are facing heat for another situation that developed in their game against the Phillies. Martin Maldonado was instructed to switch bats after the game due to it’s “barrel-size” issue. Martin was certainly disgruntled by MLB’s decision, but as they say – ‘It’s the same for everyone’, although Pujols might have a different view.
MLB rules clearly states – “A player may use a maple bat, but it has to meet MLB standards for slope of grain, among other items”. The rule had been established as a precautionary measure as MLB didn’t have any concrete evidence of it actually enhancing performance or giving an unfair advantage to the user.
Joel Sherman, who works for the New York Post said – “MLB considers that brand a riskier bat because it has a greater chance of splintering into multiple pieces”. Martin seemed quite distracted by the fact and maybe more so because he didn’t get to use the bat to perform the same way as Albert Pujols used to back in the day.
Also read:- “Habit is his nurse” Albert Pujols thumps career HR No.703, makes his way to 2nd above Babe Ruth for RBIs
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Prasenjeet Singh
(251 Articles Published)