Thor Losers In L.A.

So, according to National League umpires, throwing a retaliation pitch twelve feet behind a hitter's back is the same as burrowing it dangerously in his ribs.

As you may have heard, umpire Adam Hamari tossed Noah Syndergaard from a scoreless game in the third inning after Thor buzzed Chase Utley.
Utley, you may recall, sparked a rule change last year when he ended Reuben Tejada's post-season with a late takeout slide at second base. Ever since, Utley has been Pubic Enemy #1 in New York, even ahead of James Dolan.
 
It's no coincidence that the Dodgers abused the cobbled-together relief effort in a 9-1 win. Utley smacked two homers in the victory, including a grand slam to put the game away. 

The Larger Issue
The larger issue, though, is this: isn't this how we want pitchers to "retaliate"? Make some lame statement with a wild pitch and move on. Utley suffered no pain. No batter earned a free pass. No heads were hunted. Syndergaard's action put a period at the end of the retribution story.

Instead, the pitcher and manager got tossed, the Dodgers won a game unfairly and the Mets feel more aggrieved than before. 

Nice job, ump.