Today's New York Times has an item in the sporting page "Spotlight" feature about baseball's "unwritten rules." Other than an unfortunate reference to a Ross Bernstein book, the article mentions some interesting, if familiar, "rules" that supposedly everyone knows about but don't always observe. One of them puzzled me. Apparently, in a game earlier this season, B.J. Upton stole second and third in a game in which his team trailed the Indians by nine runs. The Indians, it seems, were mightily offended. I can understand a team being offended if they were losing by nine runs, but what the heck was this all about? I know that a lot of local SABRites feel that these "rules" are bogus and I generally agree. But if your team is winning by nine runs, why would you be offended if the other team tries to steal? After all, stolen bases are a losing proposition. 

I just want to say that a team should never stop trying to win. If "playing the game right" means playing less than 100%, then maybe we need to reassess how the game is played. 

http://bats.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/07/04/writing-down-baseballs-unwritten-rules/?s

--art