If every major league player who ever uttered a comment that was derogatory to another race or ethnicity, or mocked groups via an insult about intelligence or physical appearance, or expressed hatred for someone because they didn't like who they voted for, most (if not all) teams wouldn't be able to field a full lineup.
It is weird to me, who grew up in a military atmosphere in the 1950s, that we so harshly condemn people for making nasty comments that are general in nature, when almost everyone is guilty of having knowingly made comments to an individual that they knew would hurt that person. I don't condone racist or ethnic slurs, or any other kind of slur for that matter, but, wow, the idea that it is an offense that should get someone kicked off a team seems absurd to me.
Furthermore, I would bet that a hefty percentage of Major League players have used their physical abilities to intimidate others less physically endowed. And a goodly number were probably bullies to a greater or lesser extent while growing up.
While I'm posting, on another point: Unless you are inside the clubhouse on a daily basis, you don't know what the true dynamics are there. Reading the blogs and such doesn't provide us with that knowledge. And no matter how high an opinion you have of yourself, you do not have some sort of mystical ability to know what the Lerners, Rizzo, Martinez, etc. are thinking.
I don't know anything about what goes on in the clubhouse, but I do think it is not very reasonable to think a player who has one of the lowest WHIPs on the pitching staff was canned just because he threw his glove on the ground and stared at the dugout. Kelley has been on this team for two years, and that's time enough for the other players and the staff to know what his presence on the team was worth.
Finally, I just want to say I am mighty glad the team I root for didn't throw in the towel while only six games out of first place with almost sixty games to go. I want my team to fight for a shot at the playoffs until there is absolutely no reason to think they have a chance. I was looking at the past few years, and found that in 2015 two teams that were six/seven games back on July 31 wound up winning their divisions. While it's still unlikely that the Nats can pull it off, I damn sure want them to find out if they can. That's the team I want to root for.
