Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Real men don’t leave their wives right after birth

Justin Morgan, MD
Physician
April 20, 2014
Share
Tweet
Share

News broke recently that Daniel Murphy, second baseman for the New York Mets, recently took two days off for paternity leave, causing him to miss Major League Baseball’s opening day and the season’s second game to be with his wife and child.

Mike Francesa, a popular New York sports radio personality, devoted about 20 minutes of his Wednesday broadcast on WFAN to a rant against paternity leave. According to him, a Major League Baseball player should hire a nurse to take care of the newborn. He went on to say there is nothing for a dad to do at first but look at your wife. He minimized postpartum depression. He basically said having a baby and taking care of a baby is the wife’s (or a hired nurse’s) responsibility. In short, Francesa thinks dad needs to go and be the breadwinner—maybe he can give a bottle at night. His implication was that if you’re rich, you just need to employ someone else to take care of your kids. In order to keep up this arrangement, the man should go to work.

YouTube video

Nothing to do but look at your wife? Mike, how about spending some time bonding with your newest family member and supporting your wife who delivered your child? Childbirth isn’t a 30-minute event that ends after the umbilical cord is cut. Even the most uncomplicated delivery is not a bed of roses. Have you ever changed a diaper? Rocked a baby to sleep? Having a newborn is scary, especially for a first-time parent. Francesa said, “I mean, what would you possibly be doing? I guarantee you’re not sitting there holding your wife’s hand.” Mike, if you know what’s best, you better be holding your wife’s hand!

Boomer Esiason, former NFL quarterback, says that he would have asked his wife to have a Caesarean section before the season started to avoid a conflict. Ouch! Talk about a slap in the face to all women who have ever had a C-section. What a demeaning request. Esiason said baseball is what make Murphy’s money and provides for his family, so it should be prioritized. Boomer, it’s not about the money! Did you forget he makes a salary and stands to lose no money from taking paternity leave?

YouTube video

Each Major League Baseball team plays 162 games. By missing the first two games of the season, Daniel Murphy will miss 1.2 percent of the season to be with his wife and his firstborn baby boy named Noah. Note that Daniel Murphy played all but one game last season, logging 697 plate appearances to rank sixth in the league.

I love sports. I follow fantasy football news nearly every day from July to January. I am a lifelong St. Louis Cardinals fan. I watch their games as much as I can on television. I am a big University of Kentucky Wildcat basketball fan. But I love my wife and I love my baby more than I love sports. There is no way I would have missed being there for both of them in the first couple of days after delivery. I mean, we’re talking about opening day and one other game … there isn’t even a playoff race in sight for months.

Real men don’t leave their wives right after birth. They stick around, change diapers, hold a crying baby, support their partner, and find out what it’s really like to be a dad. If you get paternity leave (and you can afford it), you should use it. I took two weeks off and I don’t regret it for a second. Kudos to you, Daniel Murphy! I hope you have the best year of your career and your team makes the playoffs. I will cheer for you, just as long as you’re not playing the Cardinals.

Justin Morgan is a pediatrician who blogs at Bundoo, where this article originally appeared.

Prev

Doctors on the front lines of the Syrian conflict

April 20, 2014 Kevin 0
…
Next

Being a whole doctor serves patients best

April 20, 2014 Kevin 7
…

Tagged as: Pediatrics

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Doctors on the front lines of the Syrian conflict
Next Post >
Being a whole doctor serves patients best

ADVERTISEMENT

More by Justin Morgan, MD

  • California’s vaccine mandate is working. More states should adopt it.

    Justin Morgan, MD
  • The unknown impact of changing a person’s genetic makeup

    Justin Morgan, MD
  • Are essential oils safe for children?

    Justin Morgan, MD

More in Physician

  • How subjective likability practices undermine Canada’s health workforce recruitment and retention

    Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD
  • Why judgment is hurting doctors—and how mindfulness can heal

    Jessie Mahoney, MD
  • Why evidence-based management may be an effective strategy for stronger health care leadership and equity

    Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD
  • The gift we keep giving: How medicine demands everything—even our holidays

    Tomi Mitchell, MD
  • From burnout to balance: a neurosurgeon’s bold career redesign

    Jessie Mahoney, MD
  • Why working in Hawai’i health care isn’t all paradise

    Clayton Foster, MD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • How New Mexico became a malpractice lawsuit hotspot

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Why doctors are reclaiming control from burnout culture

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • Why health care leaders fail at execution—and how to fix it

      Dave Cummings, RN | Policy
    • How digital tools are reshaping the doctor-patient relationship

      Vineet Vishwanath | Tech
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Decoding your medical bill: What those charges really mean

      Cheryl Spang | Finance
    • The emotional first responders of aesthetic medicine

      Sarah White, APRN | Conditions
    • Why testosterone matters more than you think in women’s health

      Andrea Caamano, MD | Conditions
    • A mind to guide the machine: Why physicians must help shape artificial intelligence in medicine

      Shanice Spence-Miller, MD | Tech
    • How subjective likability practices undermine Canada’s health workforce recruitment and retention

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 24 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • How New Mexico became a malpractice lawsuit hotspot

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Why doctors are reclaiming control from burnout culture

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • Why health care leaders fail at execution—and how to fix it

      Dave Cummings, RN | Policy
    • How digital tools are reshaping the doctor-patient relationship

      Vineet Vishwanath | Tech
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Decoding your medical bill: What those charges really mean

      Cheryl Spang | Finance
    • The emotional first responders of aesthetic medicine

      Sarah White, APRN | Conditions
    • Why testosterone matters more than you think in women’s health

      Andrea Caamano, MD | Conditions
    • A mind to guide the machine: Why physicians must help shape artificial intelligence in medicine

      Shanice Spence-Miller, MD | Tech
    • How subjective likability practices undermine Canada’s health workforce recruitment and retention

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Real men don’t leave their wives right after birth
24 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...