I’m not sure what bothers me most — Tampa Bay outfielder B.J. Upton being such a dog during the World Series, or the fact that the television crew of Joe Buck and Tim McCarver is still covering for him.

This is a player who has been in trouble with his manager several times for not hustling. It’s not exactly a secret that he’s got a “propensity for being lazy.” But man, this is the World Series. There is just too much at stake not to run hard every second on the field. Plus, the spotlight of postseason play highlights every single thing you do on the field. Every time Upton has trotted when he should have run, we’ve seen it replayed in our living room.

Without comment, of course, from the broadcasters.

I mean, did you see Upton when he singled to right field in the first inning and meandered down the first-base line? Jayson Werth booted the ball and Upton barely made it to second. Then later, when he grounded into his third double play in two games, he basically jogged down the first-base line — just after the television crew was telling us how fast he is.

I understand the regular season and how major-league players pace themselves. But not in the postseason. Not the smart ones.

And it makes my blood boil even more that Buck and McCarver, sitting there staring at video evidence of this guy’s laziness, haven’t been roasting him for it. McCarver even made an excuse for him in Game 1 when Upton’s double-play grounder came on a checked swing and McCarver said that the swing put Upton in a difficult posture to run to first base. Yeah, right. And it was still affecting him 35 feet down the line.

I believe part of the reason some players don’t hustle is that they’re allowed to get away with it constantly. Managers coddle the good players because they have to — or they risk losing them to free agency or just long pouting sprees. The TV guys, sitting there with replays at their disposal, refuse to call out players. In situations where there are home-team broadcasters, you can understand it to a degree — be too critical of the home team and you’re going to get fired.

But network broadcasters are different. And McCarver, who was able to get himself all lathered up over Manny Ramirez, has always seemed to be selectively critical, for whatever reasons. Manny looks like Charlie Hustle next to Upton. I don’t care how many home runs Upton has hit — he’s constantly failed to hustle, put his team in jeopardy of losing and has disrespected the game because of it.

And the broadcasters who have let him get away with it look just as bad as he does.

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