Sports are etched with traditions but none more so than the sport of baseball. One of the most famous baseball traditions is singing "Take Me Out To The Ball Game" during the 7th inning stretch. However, there is a new trend spreading throughout baseball teams that makes me wonder: is this becoming a baseball tradition as well?
Pies getting thrown at a player’s face after a major feat or exciting victory are becoming more and more common in baseball. If a player has a walk-off hit, he usually gets shaving or whipped cream smothered all over his face. What are your thoughts? Do you think this will soon become a baseball tradition? Or is it simply a “fad” that will disappear?
This “event” has become so popular that CSN’s Chuck Garfien did a feature about the White Sox and shaving cream pies. The feature delves into who started the pie-in-the-face fiasco for the White Sox and how players set up “decoys” in order to ensure they get a pie in the face of their “hero of the game.” Watch the feature on You Tube below:
Below are four of my favorite “pies-in-the-face.” The reason I like them is mainly due to their execution. Have a look for yourself by clicking on the YouTube links I provided.
Luis Atilano of the Washington Nationals earned himself a pie-in-the face with his first Major League start. He allowed one run on five hits in a 5-1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 23, 2010. Why does this pie-in-the face rank among my favorites? For one, he got covered with TWO pies and the first pie was square-on, right in the center of his face. Click the link below to see his full post-game interview:
J.J. Putz of the the Arizona Diamondbacks kept his eyes open and his “neck on a swivel” in preparation for what he expected would be a post-game pie-in-the-face. The video is from 2008 when he was playing for the Seattle Mariners. I love how Putz is prepared for a pie and seems to be all skittish, yet he still gets shocked by the way in which he receives a pie-in-the-face.
His teammate, Mark Lowe, hid in Putz’s locker and snuck out as J.J. was answering media questions. The video can give fans a good enough idea of what the locker looks like but if you can’t tell, Lowe certainly had to be crouched not to be seen. His sneaky ambush-like pie-in-the-face was entertaining. Click on the link below to view the video:
Corey Patterson of the Baltimore Orioles was called up from the minors and got a pie in the face after his second game in the Big Leagues. He earned the pie after throwing out the potential game-tying run at the plate. This pie-in-the-face execution was very “gentle” and it almost appeared as if it was a teaser and his teammate Will Ohman wasn’t going to actually pie him. However, he does and Patterson’s reaction is classic. He had none. Patterson barely reacted aside from responding to the reporter’s confirmation that he got pied my teammate Will Ohman. View the video on the link below:
The video below goes along with the video above to some extent. Will Ohman pied teammate Corey Patterson in the video above, but he himself has had his fair share of pie-in-the-faces. What I like most about the one I posted below is that it was during a pre-game interview. This is the only instance I have seen a pie-in-the-face take place before a game, as opposed to at the conclusion of the game. Ohman is sitting being interviewed by a reporter, looking as if he has no suspicions as to what is to come.
Have you all seen any of the videos I posted above? Were any of you at any of these games? What pie-in-the-face have you experienced that you would like to share? I would love to hear your experiences!
