Yesterday evening the struggling Milwaukee Brewers were up against one of baseball's premier pitching talents, Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw, and to make matters worse, relief pitcher Josh Hader was still coming to grips with his big Twitter controversy. While the pitcher was taking the mound during the MLB All-Star Game on Tuesday, a series of homophobic and racist tweets were being dug up. By the time the game had ended, Hader was facing a storm of questions.
So when his Brewers clawed back into yesterday's game against the Dodgers with a three-run sixth inning to take the lead, it was Josh Hader who got the call in relief, only five days after the revelation of his bigotry, a mess he also begun to sort out. The craziest thing about that evening, besides the fact the Brewers held onto win, is that when Josh Hader made his way to the mound he received a standing ovation from the home crowd in Milwaukee.
The crowd's reaction sets off two reactions in itself. First what were they thinking? Does the Milwaukee faithful actually condone Bigotry without reservation? The other way of looking at this situation, is to consider the plight of the struggling Brewers and there best chance to secure a much needed victory: encouraging the best pitcher they have on their staff. Unfortunately the second outlook is less poignant. Milwaukee takes the L; baseball is but a game.