Kevin Youkilis is Considered Passionate, but Milton Bradley's a Hot Head?

Recently an article written by Illya Harrell got me thinking about race and how it plays a role in sports media.

Although, I don't agree with certain aspects of his story, he does make some interesting points.

Recently, I wrote an article regarding the charging of the mound by Kevin Youkilis after being hit by a pitch from Rick Porcello. I called it a selfish decision by Youkilis.

But, interesting enough, there were individuals sticking up for Youkilis even though there really wasn't much to defend. He made a poor decision and he got suspended for it. Yet, after this incident, no one would consider calling Youkilis a hot head.

The incident with Youkilis isn't the first time he has shown his anger. But none of his fits of anger were comparable to what he did when he charged the mound after being hit by Porcello.

Even last year, Youkilis admitted he had issues with controlling himself.

After a scrap with Manny Ramirez, Youkilis was quoted as saying, "It's been there. It's been there for a while. A lot of it has to do with the chip I hold on my shoulder in a lot of different areas. I just have to lose that chip."

This quote came from the article titled, "After Scrap with Manny, Kevin Youkilis Sentences Himself to Anger Management." The article goes on to state that after each time Youkilis strikes out he shouts an obscenity or slammed his helmet.

Now in some of the comments that I read, people said he's just passionate like Kevin Garnett. Really? It's not even close.

I don't see KG slamming the basketball down or shouting obscenities after a missed free throw, layup, or block attempt.

Youkilis, as he stated in his quote, said he would tone it down and he has not. It is clear that Youkilis has anger issues, but from my perspective it's because he's white that its fine for him to act like that repeatedly.

This isn't the only example either.

On July 29th, playing at home against the Oakland A's, he struck out four times, which is rare to begin with. But after each strike out he slammed his helmet down and cursed.

If this happened every once in a while, then it would be fine, but after every strikeout? That's uncalled for and unprofessional.

Let's put it this way: If Youkilis were black, would he be called passionate? Would he be received well by the fans? Would he be called a hot head? Would he be called a loose cannon? A ticking time bomb?

The answer is that if here were black, he would be called a hot head, a loose cannon, and a ticking time bomb.

So is there a player similar to Youkillis? Yes, his name is Milton Bradley.

Bradley has been known throughout his career for being a hothead.

Who can forget the scene of Bradley rushing out to argue a call at first base, and his manager Bud Black of the San Diego Padres grabbing him before he could get to the umpire? Because of Black grabbing Bradley, he spun awkwardly and tore his ACL.

For his career, Bradley has shown the propensity to get upset with bad calls made by umpires. He has been suspended for it as well. But one of the reasons why Bradley has a temper is because of the way he plays the game. He is intense!

He plays extremely hard and he will also play injured.

But, since he is known for being a hot head, the positives don't come out as much as the negatives. That's why he is thought of as a hot head, loose cannon, or ticking time bomb.

And if that's the case, Youkillis should be viewed the same way.