Victor Robles’ despicable behavior on rehab assignment has Mariners fans ashamed

What had already been a difficult season for Seattle Mariners outfielder Victor Robles took a turn toward the embarrassing on Sunday night. The question now is what it will cost him, though he has certainly already forfeited some respect among Mariners fans.

After all, a batter just can't throw his bat at a pitcher under any circumstances, much less after swinging at what the pitcher just offered. This is exactly what happened with Robles opposite Joey Estes in a Sunday contest between the Tacoma Rainiers and the Las Vegas Aviators, the Triple-A affiliates of the Mariners and Athletics, respectively:

Robles was immediately tossed from the game by home-plate umpire Joe McCarthy. There will surely be another shoe to drop in the not-too-distant future, namely in the form of a suspension for the 28-year-old outfielder.

Victor Robles made a fool of himself, and there's no defense for Mariners fans

This is a situation where some context is in order, as the moment that caused Robles to blow his stack and throw his bat did not happen in a vacuum.

It was a big deal when Robles began his rehab assignment with Tacoma, as it marked the beginning of his comeback trail after months on the sidelines with a serious injury. To be blunt, his season seemed over after he fractured his left shoulder on a spectacular catch in San Francisco back in early April.

Yet as we wrote about just a few days ago, Robles' rehab assignment was turning into a health hazard even before the events of Sunday. He was hit by pitches three times in his first two games with the Rainiers, and his frustration was so palpable after the third one that he didn't bother keeping his emotions under wraps. He kicked his bat and had a few things to say to the pitcher.

Given all this, the next pitch that hit Robles inevitably carried a high risk of making him lose his cool. And in this case, all the more so. This is not the first time Estes has drilled Robles, as he got him in the ribcage in a game last September and was one of two pitchers to nail him in the first game of his rehab assignment last Tuesday.

However, none of this makes what Robles did excusable, much less permissible.

To be clear, a 90 mph pitch to the ribcage like the one that Estes uncorked is capable of doing real damage. But Robles throwing a bat at Estes is not an equal and opposite reaction. There's a difference between throwing a cowhide-covered ball at an armored batter and throwing a heavy bit of wood at a defenseless pitcher.

You can rest assured that the league will agree, and the consequences for Robles could be severe. The sheer ugliness of what happened Sunday calls to mind when Delmon Young threw a bat at an umpire back in 2006, which earned him a 50-game suspension.

As the Mariners await Robles' fate, all there really is for fans to do is just feel uncomfortable about what happened. Robles had everyone's well wishes a week ago, but this was a case of a guy discovering his breaking point and going beyond it.

Even if one can understand how he could get to that point, that doesn't make it any less despicable. And for Mariners fans, the only hope is that Robles faces the music and comes back better for it.