Monday, May 03, 2004
Little Things & Big Things
I'm watching the Tigers-Angels game and I'm wondering about a couple of things.
Ivan Rodriguez hit his 3rd home run of the year a few minutes ago, and the Tigers have an early 2-0 lead in Anaheim. I didn't think much of Pudge going to the Tigers before this season started. Didn't think much of it at all. What is one to think about a team that loses 119 games and adds what we all think of as an "intangible" player?
Of course, Pudge Rodriguez is more than just an "intangible" player, even at a fairly advanced age for an everyday catcher. His defense is still at the top level in baseball, and he can still hit. Maybe not how he hit in Texas five or six years ago, but he's still no slouch at the plate.
But can one man make that much of a defense to a baseball team? I mean I can't go crazy about Carlos Guillen, can you? Maybe Pudge's impact is bigger than we all think, and we think it's plenty big to begin with.
Thinking of one player's impact on his team makes me think of one Pedro Martinez.
The typical train of thought when a player opens his mouth and spews nonsense is that it doesn't affect his team. His teammates are professionals after all, and they've heard it all before, etc.
But I wonder... The Red Sox lost again tonight, this time to Cleveland, and ever since Pedro started spouting off during that rain delay on Friday night, Boston's world has caved in a bit.
Do I think that because Pedro Martinez decided to pick a time when the Red Sox were enjoying one of their best stretches of baseball in recent memory to get a case of verbal diarrhea, that that is the reason for the team's three-day demise? Umm... no I don't really think that. But as I wrote above, I'm wondering about these types of things. And I know for sure, based on the results of the last few days, that it certainly didn't help his team.
From Dan Shaughnessy's column yesterday in the Sunday Globe:
There's an old saying in the NBA that a playoff series hasn't really started until the road team wins a game. We know that the Boston baseball season has not officially begun until a star Red Sox player starts bitching about something.
And so the Sox season is finally under way.
I'm watching the Tigers-Angels game and I'm wondering about a couple of things.
Ivan Rodriguez hit his 3rd home run of the year a few minutes ago, and the Tigers have an early 2-0 lead in Anaheim. I didn't think much of Pudge going to the Tigers before this season started. Didn't think much of it at all. What is one to think about a team that loses 119 games and adds what we all think of as an "intangible" player?
Of course, Pudge Rodriguez is more than just an "intangible" player, even at a fairly advanced age for an everyday catcher. His defense is still at the top level in baseball, and he can still hit. Maybe not how he hit in Texas five or six years ago, but he's still no slouch at the plate.
But can one man make that much of a defense to a baseball team? I mean I can't go crazy about Carlos Guillen, can you? Maybe Pudge's impact is bigger than we all think, and we think it's plenty big to begin with.
Thinking of one player's impact on his team makes me think of one Pedro Martinez.
The typical train of thought when a player opens his mouth and spews nonsense is that it doesn't affect his team. His teammates are professionals after all, and they've heard it all before, etc.
But I wonder... The Red Sox lost again tonight, this time to Cleveland, and ever since Pedro started spouting off during that rain delay on Friday night, Boston's world has caved in a bit.
Do I think that because Pedro Martinez decided to pick a time when the Red Sox were enjoying one of their best stretches of baseball in recent memory to get a case of verbal diarrhea, that that is the reason for the team's three-day demise? Umm... no I don't really think that. But as I wrote above, I'm wondering about these types of things. And I know for sure, based on the results of the last few days, that it certainly didn't help his team.
From Dan Shaughnessy's column yesterday in the Sunday Globe:
There's an old saying in the NBA that a playoff series hasn't really started until the road team wins a game. We know that the Boston baseball season has not officially begun until a star Red Sox player starts bitching about something.
And so the Sox season is finally under way.
