For Major League Baseball Fans, 'Hug Watch' Is In Effect

By Zach Morrison
Alex Rios
Kelvin Kuo – USA TODAY Sports

Welcome to the MLB trade deadline, folks. It is only July 19, but baseball fans all over the country are on high alert for trades leading up to the July 31 deadline.

On Friday night, Alex Rios of the Chicago White Sox was pulled from his game early because he apparently didn’t hustle at some point in the game. About 20 minutes later, Pittsburgh Pirates minor league shortstop Alan Hansen was removed from his game. A few minutes after that, Pirates Double-A outfielder Mel Rojas Jr. was removed from his game.

Obviously, this leads to speculation and rumors. The Pirates and White Sox have been linked several times from many different insiders and people that are “in the know,” so it makes sense that all those guys were removed from their respective games. A trade is obviously happening, right? To top it off, Rios was even seen hugging his teammates in the dugout, leading to a full-on “Hug Watch” on Twitter.

You know what a “Hug Watch” is, I’m sure. It happens every season. A player gets removed from the game early, hugs his teammates and is on a plane to join his new team an hour later. The bottom line is that the weeks leading up to the trade deadline are hectic and crazy, but they are also fun. If you are a fan who doesn’t like to listen and talk about trade rumors and ways to upgrade your favorite team, you’re not living the fan life correctly. We, as fans, have the right to speculate and to create rumors. That’s what makes it fun.

Share On FacebookShare StumbleUpon

You May Also Like