Reach out and bean someone

You may remember seeing the video:

In the midst of a brawl, a minor league pitcher takes aim, hurls a ball at the dugout of the opposition — and hits a fan right in the noggin, giving the fan a concussion and a nine-day headache.

Julio Castillo, then of the Peoria Chiefs, a farm team of the Chicago Cubs, was charged with two counts of felonious assault. Tuesday, he was convicted on one of them.

Castillo’s lawyer claimed the pitcher was actually trying to warn the opposition to stay away from his teammates and, as he doesn’t speak English, a 90 mph fastball was his only means of communication. Therefore, he said, he couldn’t be found guilty.

Nice try, councilor.

Still, Castillo got off easy — a 30-day sentence which, yes, he is appealing.

His future with the Cubs is uncertain.