I love Odubel Herrera. I think, as he embodies the player traits some people are trying to suffocate out of the game, he is both a bat-flipping ambassador to the team’s future and a wall-smashing reminder of its recent past.
And yet, I understand how his exuberant demeanor, while endlessly entertaining and enjoyed by me, might be a disadvantage in a certain context. When he tosses his bat, it could be for anything from a clutch home run to a line out to a walk to a bird startling him, who knows.
But with some hitters, there’s only one reason to stop and stare.