Hamels had to be suspended

May, 7, 2012

5/07/12

5:20

PM ET

By Jim Bowden | ESPN.com

When Philadelphia Phillies left-hander Cole Hamels admitted to purposefully hitting Washington Nationals rookie Bryce Harper in the first inning of Sunday’s game in Washington, he allowed misguided logic to steer his actions. Labeling it as an act of “old-school” baseball, Hamels more or less admitted he did it because of Harper's reputation as a cocky player, and MLB was completely justified in suspending Hamels for five games.

“I was trying to hit him," said Hamels. "I’m not going to deny it. That’s something I grew up watching, that’s kind of what happened. So I’m just trying to continue the old-school baseball because I think some people are kind of getting away from it.”

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ABOUT THIS BLOG

Jim Bowden

Bowden, who served as the senior vice president and GM for the Cincinnati Reds and the Washington Nationals, is an analyst for ESPN.com. In 1992, Bowden became the youngest GM in MLB history when the Reds hired him at age 31. The Reds finished in first place twice during his 10 years as GM, and he was named MLB Executive of the Year by Baseball America in 1999. After working for ESPN in 2004, Bowden became the first GM of the Washington Nationals when the franchise relocated from Montreal to Washington, D.C., in 2005, working in that role until the 2009 season. Bowden co-hosts the "Inside Pitch" radio show on Sirius XM satellite radio. Follow on Twitter: @JimBowdenESPNxm.