The College World Series has been an exciting affair so far, topped by Texas Christian University's come-from-behind 11-7 victory over Florida State on Wednesday night, a game that eliminated the Seminoles. Naturally, I was rooting for Florida State since they have two former Valley Leaguers on the squad in the person of starting third baseman Sherman Johnson (Covington) and catcher Parker Brunelle (Harrisonburg).
The Seminoles' loss does not bother me; what bothers me is the way TCU's Matt Purke wears his hat. Perhaps you've seen the goggled freshman pitcher with his baseball cap slanted some 30 degrees or so to the right. There's a reason it's called a "uniform," kid. Teams have uniforms to signify that they are, indeed, teams and not individuals. That sideways hat may as well have the intitials "MP" on it rather than "TCU," because it's clear that Matt Purke is all about Matt Purke and not about Texas Christian University. A perfect swing, a high leg kick, a graceful glide across the outfield says "I have style." Wearing your hat sideways just says "Look at me." Why not put your jersey on backwards, Matt, and really get people to look at you?
Interestingly Rule 9 Section 2 h on p108 of the NCAA rule book states that the pitcher shall not "wear jewelry or clothing items that a batter or umpire considers distracting." Let's see if any batters make an appeal to this rule as the tournament moves forward.
Then, too, as Al has pointed out, one of UCLA's pitchers appears to be wearing a faded green rag with a brim, but upon closer inspection, it is a ratty old hat. That's a disgrace to the uniform, too, but perhaps he is afraid to wash the luck out of this old cap. If that's the case, I'll give that guy a pass.
With regards to the faded hat, I think that I remember hearing that he kept it in his car so long that it faded. I don't think he earns the pass on that one.
Posted by: Becky | June 26, 2010 at 09:49 PM