Last week, Tigers second baseman Ian Kinsler was ejected from a game against the Rangers after giving home plate umpire Angel Hernandez a look after a pitch was thrown outside for a ball. Kinsler was unhappy with calls Hernandez had made earlier and commented on the inconsistency. After the game, Kinsler said that Hernandez “needs to find another job and that “he needs to stop ruining baseball games.”
Kinsler was fined but not suspended. The lack of suspension caused the umpires to soil their collective diapers and launch a two-day protest against players being mean to them. What was not reported at the time, however, is that Kinsler’s fine was a significant one and not the mere slap on the wrist the umpires made it out to be. Buster Olney:
Ian Kinsler's fine for comments about Angel Hernandez was $10,000. As Brad Ausmus said: It's a level almost unheard of in fines for players.
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) August 21, 2017
Yes, a player making $11 million as Kinsler is this year can afford that, but it’s still hefty fine for mere words. To say that it was some sort of injustice, as the umpires were basically saying in their protest, is simply silly.
In other news, in the event that Kinsler has spent his career earnings poorly and if, in fact, $10,000 will strap him, he will have some help in raising the money to pay Rob Manfred:
Starting an Ian Kinsler Fine Fund as we speak!!!
— Chipper Jones (@RealCJ10) August 21, 2017
Yiketty.
