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Reds starting pitcher Homer Bailey threw a no-hitter Tuesday night. You may have heard. If not, here you go:
Anyway, after the game, he was immediately interviewed by the local Fox Sports affiliate. When asked if batting the inning before he walked Gregor Blanco -- his only blemish -- Bailey replied, "No, I mean, I just f------ walked a guy, this game's pretty tough." You can watch it on YouTube. I was watching it live and it was unclear enough that I had to rewind. And when I realized he did, in fact, say that word, I laughed.
Not everyone had that kind of reaction.
In the aftermath, at least one local columnist threw a hissyfit, acting like Bailey is some sort of classless thug for muttering one simple word. A heat of the moment slip of the tongue overshadows the first no-hitter of the 2013 season in the eyes of this local columnist (Paul Daugherty of the Cincinnati Enquirer). He's a sports columnist, mind you.
To hear it from Homer himself, though, he didn't even know he said it -- via C. Trent Rosecrans.
Not only do I believe that Bailey wasn't even thinking about censoring his language due to the thrill of throwing his second no-hitter -- with no one else in baseball throwing one in between -- I've gotta say that I couldn't possibly care less about this.
We have far bigger things to worry about than a not-so-clear F-bomb appearing on cable TV after 10 p.m. local time. And if that word bothers you so much, maybe stop following sports. Or movies. Probably don't go to the mall or any restaurant with a bar area. In fact, it's probably best not to leave your house, other than to go to church.
People cuss. Deal with it.
Oh, and kudos to Homer Bailey for his no-hitter. That's where the real focus should be. My job is to be a baseball writer, after all, not a sensitivity counselor.
