re: Anthony Rizzo slide: Dirty or nah?

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Maddon, in fact, blamed Diaz for the incident. A former minor league catcher, Maddon said Diaz did not use proper technique.

"What would have happened had the catcher thrown to first base and completed the play before Anthony knocked him down?" Maddon asked a large group of reporters who'd gathered in the PNC Park visitors' dugout 90 minutes before Tuesday's game. "Anybody? …

"Nothing. So don't penalize Anthony for running hard."

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"Anthony is coming down the line, the catcher is right there," he said. "The catcher has an option to get rid of the ball more quickly, get farther out in front of home plate or just hold on to it. He could have done those three things also. Those are three results that could have happened. Don't penalize Anthony for doing the right baseball thing that he's been taught to do from the time he was a kid."

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"It's about technique, it's about having a clock in your head, it's about eyes in the back of your head," Maddon said. "If you can't do that, then don't catch, don't play the position, don't do those things."

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