St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright wasn’t thrilled following Game 3 of the National League Championship Series, and it wasn’t just because he took the loss against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Wainwright didn’t pitch poorly by any stretch of the imagination — he gave up just two runs over seven innings — but the Cardinals couldn’t push any runs of their own across. So Wainwright took the loss, and the Dodgers are now back in the series after losing the first two games in St. Louis.
So Wainwright’s frustration is understandable, but he took issue with more than the way he pitched. The Cardinals pitcher was also a little upset by the way Dodgers first baseman Adrian Gonzalez acted.
After Gonzalez hit an RBI double in the fourth inning, he stood on second base and made some celebratory gestures. It was a big hit in a big spot for a player who doesn’t have a ton of playoff experience, let alone playoff success, and Gonzalez celebrated as such. Two batters later, Gonzalez scored on Yasiel Puig‘s triple. It was Puig’s celebration and actions that had everyone buzzing during the game, but Wainwright could only take issue with Gonzalez, as that was the celebration he saw.
“I didn’t see Puig’s reaction,” Wainwright said, according to USA Today. “I saw Adrian doing some Mickey Mouse stuff at second, but I didn’t see Puig.”
Gonzalez defended his actions by saying that’s his go-to move.
“I did what I always do, but we are in L.A., so Mickey Mouse is only an hour away,” he said.
It wouldn’t be the first time the Dodgers have ruffled some feathers over what some have viewed as excessive celebration. Puig’s actions have been an issue all year with some baseball purists, and Los Angeles irked the Arizona Diamondbacks in September when the Dodgers celebrated their National League West title by taking a dip in the Chase Field pool in Arizona.
