Was db. Forced himself into a corner by telling the guys the next guy to not run out a ball would be benched.
Williams' tirade on "lack of hustle," directed at a player who is hustle incarnate, was a low point for the Nationals this season, but Harper's injury, which came as he tried to stretch a double into a triple by -- wait for it -- hustling, is a new nadir. It's bad enough that the inexperienced manager felt the need to heap dispraise on Harper in a public forum; it's worse that those empty criticisms might in any way have led to Harper taking more of a risk than usual and tearing that thumb ligament.
On top of that, Williams seems to have it in for Harper, treating him more harshly than he has treated other players who've committed similar or graver mistakes. On April 18, the Nationals played an ugly game, making three errors -- two by Ian Desmond -- and misplaying several others. Williams didn't bench anyone during the game for sloppiness or lack of focus, and more importantly, he didn't throw any of his players under the bus after the game, refusing to even tell the media what he'd said to them after the shoddy performance. “That's for me and my team, and nobody else's business,” he told reporters. So why did Williams feel so willing to degrade Harper to the media after Harper's perceived lack of hustle?
On April 20, a day after The Benching, Jayson Werth batted with two outs in the bottom of the first inning, checked his swing, and grounded out to first base … but clearly gave up on the play before first baseman Matt Adams threw the ball to pitcher Shelby Miller. Williams didn't bench Werth, didn't call him out during or after the game, didn't do anything. Why is Werth immune to criticism for failure to false-hustle but Harper gets publicly shamed for it?
