Baltimore Orioles: Tribute to Mike Flanagan Was Not Wrong

Incredibly enough, I have heard several people having an issue with the fact that the Baltimore Orioles paid tribute to one of their greatest pitchers, Mike Flanagan. No doubt his death was extremely tragic and self-inflicted, but that should never stop the Orioles from paying their respects and mourning his death.

Ask anyone and they will tell you Mike Flanagan was a great player and a great human being. He was an important part of the Orioles' trips to the World Series in 1979 and their championship victory in 1983. Flanagan was always considered a class act and people like him don't come around very often.

So it is surprising to me when people have had an issue with the Orioles celebrating Flanagan's life after his passing with a tribute. 

Why, you might ask, would anyone have a problem celebrating his life?

How Flanagan died—suicide—isn't an easy pill to swallow. There are many people out there who believe the Orioles should have swept him under the rug because of the way he died. That is absolutely ridiculous. After all, it was a celebration of his life and his baseball career, not a celebration of his death and how he died.

Does Flanagan not deserve the same amount of respect because he committed suicide? Does his tragic and sudden passing erase all the great things he did as a member of the Orioles and in his entire life as a whole?

In one simple word, no.

A lot of times, unfortunate situations like these can get bogged down with a lot of crap. Speculation, rumors and judgements will be passed down by many and in this instance, none of them are deserved.

Flanagan was a great player, and more importantly a great human being. He deserves much better than that. Hats off to the Orioles in paying respects to one of their legends. Not that it even needs to be said, but the Orioles absolutely did the right thing.