The Baseball Writers Association has defended Fox Sports' writer Jake Mintz, who was inside the Atlanta Braves clubhouse when he heard shortstop Orlando Arcia talking trash about Philadelphia Phillies slugger Bryce Harper after game two victory. Mintz was first to report that Arcia continuously kept repeating, "Ha-ha, atta-boy, Harper!'"
The quote became infamous, even showing up on a shirt in the Phillies locker room celebration after knocking the Braves out of the postseason.
The BBWAA has defended Mintz from other journalists in the sport, such as Alanna Rizzo, who went on the show "High Heat," and said, "And then some jackoff comes in at the end of the season that gets a credential, God only knows why. And the clubhouse is a sacred space," she continued her rant saying, "And, remember, I've been in clubhouses for the last 16, 17 years. I remember I would go in there, get my job done and get out. That is their space. So for this idiot to go in there and take something out of context just to make him give himself a name is ridiculous."
After the incident on which Mintz reported, the Braves announcers decided to defend Arcia and his actions. Fellow teammates, Travis d'Arnaud, said the clubhouse is "a sanctuary," and the incident makes the players' trust in the media falter.
Kevin Henry, who was at the game, wrote in defense of the players claims that the quote never should have gotten out.
MLB player Kevin Gausman also defended Arcia, saying, "It's ridiculous us players have to watch what we say in OUR clubhouse." Many are picking the side of Arcia or the writer.
Arcia said "he wasn't supposed to hear," but his comments occurred while the media was around, and Arcia has been in the league for eight seasons now and should know by this point that if there is a good story, any writer would take it.
At the end of the day, the Braves shouldn't have even won game two and should have gotten swept. They didn't play well, and Arcia played a major role in the series loss with his struggles at the bat and comments, which lit a fire under the Phillies.
