Can anyone explain to me why Antonio Bastardo (New York Mets) feels the need to continue throwing fast balls to Daniel Murphy (Washington Nationals), when the result is inevitably a home run? Two nights in a row of fast balls, two home runs. If we do something once and it causes a less than ideal effect, why do we do it again? It's not as if anyone wants to make it to the Repeat Offender List, yet we do. It's strange though, I've noticed that we only do it in regards to other people.
For example, if I run in an old pair of sneakers and five minutes into my run my foot hurts, I'm probably not going to wear those shoes again for running. That is easy enough. If someone does something wrong to me however, it seems cruel not to give them another chance. Is it because people are so unpredictable? Do we keep giving chances because we never know if this time it will be different, because maybe they changed and it's no guarantee that you're actually making a mistake? Or is it because that's just what we want to believe?
I bet you thought this article was going to be about baseball. Good try, but Bastardo just got me thinking a little bit, and here is what I've decided. When we make mistakes that concern no one but ourselves and our own decisions, it's simple to not make the mistake again, because we can predict our role in the mistake and most likely the effect. However, when we make a mistake with someone else, regardless of the circumstances, whether they are the same or different from before, you can never really know what someone else will do. No matter how much we might wish otherwise, everyone has some semblance of hope that other people don't intentionally hurt us. Or at least that if they do hurt us, they won't do it again if given another chance. This becomes especially problematic if it happens more than once.
I may not be making sense right now, so I'll just sum up what I'm trying to say, because I think it's important, and I think bringing it to anyone's attention can be helpful, even if they might already know it logically. People change, all the time, sometimes slightly, sometimes dramatically, but they do. Therefore, I think that giving someone a second chance or possibly making a mistake you've already made, isn't always a bad thing. It may work out, because maybe that person did change. Obviously, it depends. However, there needs to be a limit and you can't continually make the same mistake, because at a certain point, it's your own fault for not learning. We can't allow toxic people into our lives and give them chance after chance while we continue to make the same mistakes. I know everyone hopes things will change and people will change and we can all have a happily ever after just as we want it, but that's wrong. It's so important to remember your value and never let anyone turn your kindness into your weakness.
With that said, the second home run might have just been Bastardo hoping the last hit was just luck, but if it happens again, well then that's a problem.
