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Prior to Wednesday night’s World Baseball Classic final between the United States and Puerto Rico, USA second baseman Ian Kinsler commented on how the two squads show their passion for the game differently.

Kinsler’s words are likely to raise eyebrows due to the phrasing he used. Here’s the excerpt making its rounds, courtesy of the New York Times:

“I hope kids watching the WBC can watch the way we play the game and appreciate the way we play the game as opposed to the way Puerto Rico plays or the Dominican plays,” Kinsler said. “That’s not taking anything away from them. That just wasn’t the way we were raised. They were raised differently and to show emotion and passion when you play. We do show emotion; we do show passion. But we just do it in a different way.”

While it’s unclear what Kinsler meant by “raised differently,” it’s a silly point. Nearly every team in the WBC has shown emotion -- that’s what happens when everyone wants to win. Alas, only certain teams get knocked for it. 

Let’s look at some examples:

These are ostensibly the kinds of displays Kinsler is referencing. Scandalous stuff. 

But if someone wanted to, they could make the same kind of highlight reel out of Team USA’s displays of life. To wit:

Is there a point where a celebration can cross the line? Probably. But should we be focused on this nonsense at the tail end of an exciting tournament -- one that might help make baseball more appealing to youngsters? Nah. 

Let’s just play ball and have some fun with it -- is that too much to ask?