David Ortiz Risks Legacy On PED Article

Even though I think Ortiz brought some of this on himself with his off the cuff "Dominican milkshake" comments, I sympathize with his plight here just a little bit.

from Seamheads.com
http://seamheads.com/2015/04/02/david-ortiz-risks-legacy-on-ped-article/

Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz recently penned an article for the website The Players Tribune professing his innocence and annoyance regarding claims of steroid use.

The longtime Sox designated hitter was outed by The New York Times in 2009 as a player failing a drug test during the 2003 season. The paper named seven of at least 100 players failing tests including Ortiz, teammate Manny Ramirez, Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez, San Francisco Giants legend Barry Bonds and two others. The lawyers speaking to the Times did not provide the entire list and would have faced judicial sanctions for releasing information sealed by a court. The document naming Ortiz and all others has been destroyed.

Since the Players Association and Major League Baseball agreed on performance-enhancing drug testing and punishment in 2006, Ortiz has passed every test.  Still, his name is whispered by fans, especially of Boston rivals, every year of his Red Sox career, increasing in volume after his failed test disclosed in 2009. Pointing to a lack of decline in offensive statistics in his mid-to-late 30s and a World Series for the ages, those whispers may have merit.

To Ortiz’s defense, the once portly slugger slimmed down over the last five years and became a smarter hitter at the plate, knowing what pitches to layoff and placing the ball more to the opposite field. Is that the primary reason at 38-years-old Ortiz slugged 35 home runs for the first time since 2007 at 31?

With an understanding that haters will hate, the most perplexing part of what has happened recently is Ortiz himself coming forward to thrust his lack of use into the conversation. He explained himself in 2009 and, according to him, passed every urine and blood test since. Because his career goes against the curve for aging heavyset sluggers have gone through before does not mean he is cheating, no matter how much his name is mentioned in New York.

If he pleads his case, he's criticized. If he says nothing he is criticized. A true no-win situation for the player vs. the media. 

How does that saying go?

"You have the right to remain silent. If you give up the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you in the court of public opinion. Do you understand these rights?"

Personally, I'm waiting for someone to use the hat size argument against him, but maybe that was a Bonds exclusive argument?    ~;::::::;( )">  ¯\_( )_/¯

Sandoval Fires Back at Ex-Teammate Huff - Puck the Fanda

AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez

Pablo Sandoval challenged Aubrey Huff's claims following his critical Facebook post this week.

Pablo will fit right in with Ortiz & Company in Boston. It sure looks like self-indulgent assholes of a feather flock together, Did I mention I agree with Aubrey Huff's assessment?


from Bleacher Report:
Sandoval Fires Back at Ex-Teammate Huff:

"Who is Aubrey Huff?" Sandoval asked in response to a post made by the former first baseman on Facebook. "What is important here is to see where the person who made those comments is, and where I am now, that's what counts."

Huff, who played 13 years in the big leagues, ended his career in 2012 after the Giants declined the $10 million option they held on him for the 2013 season. He currently is a assistant varsity baseball coach at Canyon Crest Academy in San Diego.

"I'm pretty sure their (sic) wasn't a tear shed on behalf of all the players, and the coaches when he signed with Boston," Huff's Facebook post from earlier in the week read. "It has always been about Pablo. He had the fans fooled but not the players! One of the biggest reasons he didn't want to come back is because the Giants made him workout on the treadmill every day! Pretty sure that was a driving force for him! Never the less [sic] he could have always been a legend in San Fran but ego always will come in to play when it comes to Pablo! Sorry for the rant just want to take up for the players who are there now holding their tongues, because they don't want to get in the middle of this! If you can't get along with guys like (Buster) Posey, (Madison) Bumgarner, (Matt) Cain, (Jeremy) Affeldt (sic), just to name a few, then maybe it's time to look in the mirror! Rant over!"

Huff was reacting to a Bleacher Report story last week in which Sandoval asserted he left the Giants because they "disrespected" his agent, and that "it is not about money, it is about how you treat the player."

Sandoval also was quoted as saying he missed only Giants manager Bruce Bochy and outfielder Hunter Pence.

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Recall it was Pablo's agent who created the initial amateurish faux-pas by saying Sandoval wanted (implied: deserved) "Hunter Pence" money. Bringing another teammates name into your individual contract negotiation that your agent is running through the press is a double faux-pas. You bring an amateur to a professional negotiation and bad things are going to happen. This was a  bush league agent trying to compete in the major leagues and he pissed down his leg. That would be bad enough, but to piss on his clients teammates when his client is the one who has to live in the locker room is just plain DUMB!!

Pablo wasn't disrespected. He and his team were disrespecting others and the organization. He'll fit right in with his fellow Mr. Big Heads in Boston. It's not like Hanley Ramirez was a joy in the Dodgers clubhouse either.

Enjoy your Dominican milkshakes fellas. Another big-ass target for David Price this year.

Take a look in the mirror once in a while Pablo. Oh yeah, that's been a problem for you for quite some time it seems, along with the scale.

The question shouldn't be "Who is Aubrey Huff?", it should be "Who is the real Pablo Sandoval?"

Puck the Fanda!!!

Giants "not in the driver's seat" in Jon Lester negotiations - Giants Extra

I heard this interview with Evans on Sirius yesterday and thought "then the Cubs ARE in the drivers seat" and that is how it turned out. Giants once again are in the back seat.

from Giants Extra:
Giants "not in the driver's seat" in Jon Lester negotiations - Giants Extra:

Assistant general manager Bobby Evans was less optimistic about signing Lester on Tuesday, saying he feels the free agent left-hander is feeling a strong pull from Boston and Chicago. Lester was drafted by the Red Sox and spent his whole career there before a July trade to Oakland. The Cubs are run by former Red Sox executives Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer. “I think there are other clubs he’s a little more attached to,” Evans said. “Ultimately, I don’t know, but the sense we get is that we’re not in the driver’s seat. I don’t know exactly who is, but it will probably come down to deep relationships he has in other places.”

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So good for the Cubbies, they get their bell-cow. And they needed this win more than the Giants and the Red Sox. Good for the Sawks, 'cause Lester got the opportunity to publicly lead their owner John Henry around grovelling and begging and apologizing for past sins, before finally telling him to F-off. Truly every bitter employee and jilted teenage girls dream come true. The Daily Double of revenge.

And good for the Giants, since they won't have to deal with the dynamic of a guy who may be second or third in the rotation behind Bumgarner and Cain, if he's 100%, carrying the top contract around the clubhouse. That may have been the deciding factor for Lester, with the Cubs he is THE MAN and if he leads them to the promised land, it's never been done before. In SF, he might have the fear that "dang, even if the team wins the World Series, they've been there, done that". Same with the Sawks, so the Cubbies make the most sense. If he wins on the North Side, he owns this town.

Now the Giants can go after the guy who I still think fits better in the rotation and the clubhouse and that is "Big Game" James Shields. Forget about Scherzer and his $200M. That's Yankee money.

And get Romo back before he shuffles down to LA and joins Mr. Wilson in the embattled former Giants closers club that the Dodgers bullpen may develop into. .

And get a Vogelsong clone because I heard him interviewed on Sirius it seems like he's gone to Minnesota of Philliy or anywhere but SF. Way to burn that bridge quickly guys.

Jake Peavy defines being a good teammate

Other than the contributions of the kiddie-corps (Panik and Susac) I don't know of anything else that has turned the Giants (once-sinking) ship around more. Replacing Matt Cain was an absolute must. Maybe Petit steps in and gives you the same type of innings and the same record, but he doesn't bring the same presence that Peavy does. His quote below about being a good teammate is classic.

Kudos to Sabean, this is in his GM wheelhouse. Bringing in a veteran and wringing out the last bit of performance out of him. So maybe, this at least partially offsets the Uggla experiment somewhat. Sabean also gets props for bringing back Travis Ishakawa who has been a godsend at first base and as a lefty bat off the bench. I'm sure there was considerable eye-rolling from the assembled Giants bloggers when that move was made (myself included). Ishakawa is almost an offensive weapon now.

This article adds some of the detail and once again is very classy coming from a Sawks reporter.

from NESN.com:
Jake Peavy Trade With Red Sox Paying Dividends For Giants Down Stretch | MLB | NESN.com:

Peavy, who was 1-9 with a 4.72 ERA through 20 starts at the time of the trade, has rewarded the Giants since landing in the Bay Area. He’s 5-4 with a 2.29 ERA in nine starts with San Francisco, helping the team absorb the loss of Matt Cain. Peavy’s 1.12 ERA since Aug. 9 is tops in the National League.

“Over the past few weeks we’ve found some identity as a team,” Peavy told reporters Thursday after another solid performance. “Playing good team baseball, playing for each other, playing hard.”

The Giants entered Friday with a 22-15 record since the beginning of August. They trailed the Los Angeles Dodgers by only two games in the National League West and sat atop the NL Wild Card standings alongside the Pittsburgh Pirates. Obviously, it’s not all Peavy’s doing. But San Francisco looks rejuvenated.

“As you get older, you realize what the word ‘teammate’ is,” Peavy said. “When I walk away from this game, that’s what I want to be said about me. I don’t care about any numbers, any wins and losses. I want my peers, when they get asked about me, to say this guy came in prepared, he got his work done, and he was one of the best teammates I’ve ever had.”

Peavy’s status as a great teammate never was in question. Now, with a change of scenery, he’s back to being a quality starting pitcher, too.

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