Some baseball signs are open to interpretation, but not pointing to the heavens

Pointing is newest sign in major league baseball

Signs, signs, everywhere the signs.

Back in the day it was fairly simple to figure them out in baseball. One finger for a fastball, two for a curve, maybe a third for whatever extra pitch the guy on the mound at the time might have.

Deciphering what the third base coach was doing was a little more difficult, but that was all part of the fun. At least we knew what he was trying to accomplish.

Not anymore. Now there are new signs with deeper meanings, as Casey Blake found out the other day at Dodger Stadium.

Blake had the misfortune of being caught on camera making a gesture in the dugout after hitting a home run off San Francisco closer Brian Wilson to tie Sunday’s game in the 12th inning. He appeared to be mocking Wilson by making the crossed-arm, finger-pointing gesture Wilson uses after each successful save.

He apparently hurt Wilson’s feelings, so much so that Wilson’s teammates had to console him in the locker room after the game.

Turns out the gesture was more than just a way for Wilson to celebrate. It was his way of expressing his faith and remembering his late father.

Blake said later that had he known that, he wouldn’t have mocked Wilson. But, really, how many signs are players supposed to keep track of?

Sure, pointing to the heavens seems to be the universal way of celebrating success on the field these days. Barry Bonds believes he started the craze by pointing upward after each one of his mammoth home runs, though cynics might suggest that it would be more appropriate for him to point to his chemist instead.

But Wilson apparently wasn’t content with a mere finger stretched upward. He came up with a gesture that could be open for interpretation by opposing players, and Blake responded in kind.

In Blake’s defense, the only other athlete I’ve seen make a similar gesture was boxer Bernard “The Executioner” Hopkins. Hopkins crossed his arms above his head entering the ring not to honor anyone, but to show his opponent that his fate was already sealed.

That’s boxing, though, where anything goes. Do something like bite off an ear in a baseball game, and you could get in trouble.

But what’s the point about all the pointing anyway?

Yes, I know it’s all about honoring God and thanking him for providing enough skill to (a) hit a home run, (b) strike out an opposing player, or (c) get a save. Either that, or a tribute to a deceased family member for passing along enough skill to (a) hit a home run, (b) strike out an opposing player, or (c) get a save.

Or, in the case of Wilson, both, hence the need for the combination crossing of the arms and finger pointing.

An increasing number of players seem to be doing it, and there does seem to be some protocol developing around it. A mere double doesn’t rate a finger pointed skyward, and neither does a sacrifice fly. It’s got to be an accomplishment of a higher variety, something worthy of drawing attention to the heavens.

You know, like saving a baseball game.

It’s not something that translates well outside of sports, either. The guy who did a great job making me lunch at my favorite taco shop the other day didn’t step back and point his hands to the sky in celebration. I’ve yet to see anyone try it in a crowded office, and no one would dare do it after making it past security in the airport.

What’s surprising to me is that other players allow it in a sport where the unwritten code is that the one thing you don’t do is show another guy up. Aubrey Huff was quick to mock New York Yankee Joba Chamberlain’s fist pump after hitting a home run off him the other day, but no one says a thing when a player jogs across home plate with his arms held aloft.

Maybe things have changed, but my guess is there’s some muttering in the opposing dugout when Francisco Rodriguez finishes off a game by falling to his knees, pointing to the sky and screaming something unintelligible. Save that for winning the World Series, not for protecting a three-run lead against the Washington Nationals.

Indeed, the whole pointing to the sky thing is being done so much it has become trite, which might be why Wilson came up with his variation. Had he stuck to the basics, Blake probably would have given him a pass.

Because even in baseball no one messes with departed relatives or the man upstairs.

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Tim Dahlberg is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at tdahlberg@ap.org