Pete Alonso Wants MLB To Allow 'Hockey-Style' Fights Between Hitters And Pitchers
The Mets first baseman wants brawls brought to MLB.
New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso would like to see Major League Baseball get more physical, like, a lot more physical.
Speaking ahead of the MLB All-Star Game festivities in Atlanta this week, Alonso was asked what current rule he would change, and his mind immediately went to charging the mound.
Currently, if a player charges the mound, they're immediately ejected. Alonso isn't a fan of that and would rather see pitchers and hitters allowed to settle their differences with their fists with no consequence.
"If there is one rule I could change, I don't think people should get ejected after charging the mound and fighting. I think it should be hockey style," Alonso explained.
Reporters can be heard laughing after Alonso began his answer, but he carried on in a completely serious tone, and it became clear that he had given this rule idea some serious thought.
"No teams, no nothing, because that's when people get hurt," Alonso continued, referencing when dugouts clear and multiple fights break out. "I think there's a rule if you want to go out and charge the mound, then you should be able to, but if the pitcher or hitter or whoever charges and if they don't want to fight, they take a knee, and they don't have to fight.
"If someone goes out and takes a knee then it is like whatever, then you both go your separate way, that is what I would change about the game."
There is absolutely no reality in which a rule like this will ever be implemented into Major League Baseball, but props to Alonso for going all out with the idea. His proposal, including the rule that if a player loses the fight, he gets ejected from the game while the winner gets to remain in the game, is some entertaining stuff.
With Alonso specifically referencing fighting in hockey, it's always interesting to think about how different hockey might be if it were created today. Guys on ice with razor blades attached to the bottom of their feet with a weapon in hand, chasing around a rubber bullet, may not make it out of the proposal meeting in the year 2025.