The Braves' Matt Diaz: Takin' One for the Team

I'm sure there are many of us out there  who have screamed and yelled at players to let a very tight inside pitch hit him when the bases are loaded so that a run will score; I'll admit that I've done it.

I vividly remember getting hit on the arm in little league simply because I knew the run on third base would score.

Hey, a run is a run is a run. And as a fan, I am naturally desperate for scores; I'll selfishly take them any way I can.

But never in my life would I ever expect to see a player openly advocate such a practice, no matter how badly he is struggling. Well, not only did Matt Diaz hope he got hit with the bases loaded, he was willing to get hit in the head! Crazy!

ESPN.com:

"With St. Louis leading 1-0, McClellan (1-1) walked Omar Infante, Chipper Jones, and Jeff Francoeur to set the stage for Diaz's go-ahead hit with two outs.

McClellan threw his 2-2 pitch behind Diaz's head. Diaz didn't exactly jump out of the way.

"I was hoping it would hit my head," Diaz said. "I could not believe it didn't hit my head. I guess I lost too much weight.""

I don't care how much I struggled with baseball, I could never imagine wanting to get hit in the head. That would freakin' hurt.

Needless to say, Matt Diaz ia a braver man than I and without a doubt a somewhat crazy outfielder who is severely devoted to helping the Braves in whatever way he can.