Are bat flips disrespectful? MLB legends say there is a line that shouldn’t be crossed

Bat flips , props and celebrations have become commonplace in the modern Major League Baseball.

There is growing support for showing passion, energy and excitement in baseball since José Bautista sparked the bat flip trend nearly a decade ago.

A prime example is Rangers right fielder Adolis Garcia, who is known for his showmanship. Garcia often sends fans into a frenzy with a flip of the bat, if he hits a go-ahead home run.

Some of the old guard, however, would say that a bat flip celebration is disrespectful.

Texas Rangers legend Rafael Palmeiro said during All-Star Week the respect players once had for one another has vanished. He said the “greatest of all time” would never consider a bat flip.

Times have changed.

“Hank Aaron never did that,” Palmeiro said. “Willie Mays never did that. Mickey Mantle never did that.”

Players followed certain unwritten rules: Don’t upstage the pitcher. Don’t disrespect your opponent. Make the moment about the team and not the individual.

Hall of Fame pitcher Rollie Fingers retired in 1985, a time when bat flips were almost non-existent.

“If a guy hit a home run off me, he just dropped the bat and ran the bases,” Fingers said. “ These guys, if they start flipping bats – Be alive the next time you come up.”

That means what you think it means. The showboating batter, or even a teammate, would have to get ready to take a fastball to the back. That’s just how things were in the ‘70s and ‘80s.

“There’s a good chance you’re going to get knocked down or yelled at,” Fingers said. “But I never had any problem with any of that stuff when I was pitching. Guys didn’t do that. They didn’t show up pitchers. I mean, if I was pitching today, I would remember who did it and you might get buzzed.”

But Fingers isn’t pitching today. And the players that share his old-school mindset retired long ago. Baseball has changed, and players are far more tolerant of celebrations.

Hall of Fame player Andre Dawson retired in 1996, but has a more modern approach. He said “let the kids play.”

“Let them do what they do,” Dawson said. “I think it’s very acceptable to a degree as long as you’re not showing the opposition up. There’s a lot of animation in the game today. And, sometimes, it can be fun and exciting.”

Texas Rangers legend Mark Teixeira, a three-time Silver Slugger who retired in 2016, has a similar view to Dawson. He said there is a place for showmanship if it’s in good fun, but warned there could be unintended consequences.

“I think you can take it too far,” Teixeira said. “As a teammate, if someone’s bat flipping and celebrating when the team’s losing by four or five runs, I don’t think that would be appropriate, right? But late in the game, you get a big home run, you make a great play – Absolutely. Go ahead and celebrate. I think the fans would appreciate that. And I think it’s great for the energy of the game.”

Finding a balance

Palmeiro acknowledged that excitement celebrations can bring to the game but emphasized there is a line that shouldn’t be crossed.

“What I don’t like and appreciate is how they throw it in your face, to the opponent,” Palmeiro said. “We wanted to beat the opponent but you also want to show respect, right? You show respect not for not just for your opponents but for your teammates. You want to show respect to the actual game of baseball, and the fans.”

How do you know whether or not you’ve crossed “the line?” It can be a tricky situation to navigate because an opponent taking offense to a celebration can be out of your control.

“There’s guys that are having a bad day,” Palmeiro said. “There’s guys that are they may have personal issues coming into the ballpark. You can snap - a pitcher may snap and they may see that you’re doing it and next time you come up you might throw one at your head and that’s unacceptable. And it used to happen when I played.”

Although players are still thrown at from time-to-time, you see less retaliation in today’s MLB. Even without a brawl, Palmeiro warned against the selfishness of bat flipping.

“You’re trying to win a game. It’s a team game,” Palmeiro said. “You don’t need to bring the attention to yourself because you think you did something that’s so incredible. 10,000 other players before you did it.”

Hall of Famer Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez acknowledged that the MLB is a different game, saying the angry fans should move on.

“There are some batters that hit home runs, stay at home plate and do things that make other teams a little bit disappointed, but that’s part of the game,” Rodriguez said. “We played in our era that was a little different, but hey, when you see younger generations and younger players on the field, they’re going to do that and there’s nothing that you can do.”