In baseball there are a lot of things that you just do not do. They may seem reasonable at a first glance, but it really is just smart to break these “unwritten rules” and it could help you win a game. Sure you might get criticized for it, but the people who criticize you for breaking the rules do not understand what it takes to get to the top of the top.

First, when a pitcher is throwing a gem, you are not supposed to bunt for a base hit. Why? If it is a close game, your team has reached base once and has not been able to get past second, why are you now limited in what you can do if it is a close game? If you successfully lay down a bunt and beat out the throw, I would argue that it would actually be even harder to reach base than getting a base hit, because when the pitcher is throwing a gem, the defense is on their toes and they are more involved than if their team is down or up 10 runs. It just does not make any sense.

Next, if you are going to put a position player in to pitch, you better not put him in when you are up. That does not make any sense. Pitchers are getting hurt more frequently than ever, and if you do not want to try to waste any arms in your bullpen, why can you not put a player in? Because it is disrespectful? If you think it is disrespectful, maybe try scoring runs? Maybe take advantage of the fact that there is a player on the mound that probably has not pitched since college or before that and try to get some runs? Stop whining and get good.

Now, there are some unwritten rules that make perfect sense. Like stealing a base when you are really far ahead. If you are up 15 and steal a base, it is just rubbing salt in a wound, especially since baseball is the only sport where a team can not just run the clock down. However, the rule of not being able to steal a base when you are greatly behind is very dumb. Why wouldn’t you try to get back into the game and make it competitive? That’s just giving up which is not something that anybody likes to do in major league baseball.

I left out superstitions because the superstitious ones make sense to me, like why would you take any risks to not have something good happen to your team? But I can write a separate blog on that at another time.