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Pedro
06-17-2004, 07:44 AM
From The Herald:

http://redsox.bostonherald.com/redSox/view...articleid=32196 (http://redsox.bostonherald.com/redSox/view.bg?articleid=32196)



DENVER - Just one week into his 2004 season, that is definitely rust you're seeing when Nomar Garciaparra [stats, news] fields his position and swings a bat.

What you should hear is how much resentment he is carrying around.

Garciaparra, who missed the first 57 games with Achilles tendinitis, believes he rushed his return from a six-game minor league rehab stint (21 at-bats), partly to shut up those who questioned the length of his recovery. To add insult to his injury, Garciaparra believes his character and work ethic have been questioned for no good reason, his long list of baseball accomplishments has been ignored, and what people remember about him is the .170 batting average from last September.

Damned if he does, damned if he doesn't, Garciaparra seems to be of the mindset that he simply can't win.

He's all right with that, though. Eligible for free agency after the season, the option of winning somewhere else is always open.

"I've been judged on one month - I've got eight years,'' Garciaparra, bemoaning the ``what have you done for me lately?'' standards of some, said before last night's 7-6 loss to the Colorado Rockies. ``Think about what I've done. What would you rather have: eight great years and one bad month or eight bad months and one good year? I think those eight years count - they will somewhere, to somebody.

Garciaparra plainly is smarting from the dip his stock has taken, if not in the fans' eyes but in the eyes of some in the baseball universe. The entire offseason soap opera that revolved around the Red Sox [stats, schedule]' failed pursuit of Alex Rodriguez, the irrevocable waiver placement of Manny Ramirez [stats, news] and then the spats between Garciaparra's agent and the front office has stopped spinning as violently as it was. But, the eddies and whirlpools left behind still surround Garciaparra.

"Everyone assumes I'm someone different, or I'm trying to do something different, but people have been assuming what I'm like for so long now,'' he said, "so apparently what I've done over the past eight years obviously means nothing. What counts is the end of last year or the offseason. Apparently eight years don't count, but I think they count - they count somewhere.''

The idea that he prolonged his recovery amazes him.

"It's never been in my nature, it's never been. Why would I do that now?'' Garciaparra said. ``You're here for a week, and that's all I hear. I'm playing and I'm still hearing that I'm doing something wrong. And jeez, I haven't even played for a few months.

"I can't win - 21 ABs (for Pawtucket) but no, `You're faking it' and `Cmon, what are you waiting for?' Then I come back, they are still going to say `See - he sucks. He's not good. You were bad last year, you're bad this year.' It's a no-win situation. They should just be glad I'm back.''

Garciaparra being back is what prompted this particular venting opportunity.

On Tuesday night at Coors Field, he looked tentative going for a Vinny Castilla line drive in the eighth inning, when his leap was not as high as usual. Garciaparra said he got a bad jump on the ball, and the sightlines for an infielder here are not particularly helpful.

Garciaparra made an error last night, but looked a bit more comfortable at the plate, going 2-for-5 with a run scored.

When he was asked if this should be considered spring training for him, he said, ``Absolutely. It's still there. I don't know, I've only had four or five games, and I get to figure it out up here against the best - that's great, to stay hot, huh? - right in midseason.''

He said he wouldn't mind if he were still working out his kinks in the minors.

"That would be great, just working out, getting some feel, but I don't have that luxury because then I'm faking it - am I right?'' Garciaparra said. ``Think about it - I get 21 ABs and I'm faking it.''

If only Garciaparra were judged strictly on his results, both from the past and the present, this might all seem a little fairer to him, it was suggested.

``You would think,'' he said, ``but obviously it doesn't because if it was, a lot of the stuff that has been said about me an awful lot of times wouldn't be said. Because if it's based on performance, it's not `what have you done for me lately' but it's `what have you done.' And if that's the case, then a lot of stuff wouldn't be said. Right? Good point, right?''

Good point or not, it's how Garciaparra feels, it's how he is thinking right now. As you watch him work into major league shape the rest of the season, it's something for everyone else to chew on as well.


Uhh... music to my ears. I hope he gets even more pissed off. Especially when Pedro is saying all these great things... re-sign Tek, Petey, Pokey and Swilly and the Sox will be swell. We can use the extra $11.5 or whatever he making as well as Lowe's salary and the $3-4 M dip Pedro will take on his new contract. I'll chew on that, Silverman... and you had better keep defending Pedro.

yawkeyway
06-17-2004, 07:47 AM
Originally posted by Pedro@Jun 17 2004, 08:44 AM
Uhh... music to my ears. I hope he gets even more pissed off. Especially when Pedro is saying all these great things... re-sign Teke, Petey, Pokey and Swilly and the Sox will be swell.
He has every right to be pissed. Red Sox fans are acting extremely dicky towards him, and he deserves none of it. What with the whole Pay Rod thing over the offseason, and the "We hate Nomar now, he's expendable" attitude, and now everyone hates him because of his injury and his difficulty recovering. This guy can't win at all, he's right. I feel bad for him.

It would certainly be a shame if the best player the sox have left the team beacuse of the retarded fans. Man, this guy must feel underappreciated to the maximum amount possible. I wish I could speak to him personally and apologize for how retarded some sox fans are (not directed at you Pedro). He better not leave, he's my favorite player on the sox by far. :angry:

Pedro
06-17-2004, 07:53 AM
Originally posted by yawkeyway+Jun 17 2004, 05:47 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (yawkeyway &#064; Jun 17 2004, 05:47 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-Pedro@Jun 17 2004, 08:44 AM
Uhh... music to my ears. I hope he gets even more pissed off. Especially when Pedro is saying all these great things... re-sign Teke, Petey, Pokey and Swilly and the Sox will be swell.
He has every right to be pissed. Red Sox fans are acting extremely dicky towards him, and he deserves none of it. What with the whole Pay Rod thing over the offseason, and the "We hate Nomar now, he&#39;s expendable" attitude, and now everyone hates him because of his injury and his difficulty recovering. This guy can&#39;t win at all, he&#39;s right. I feel bad for him.

It would certainly be a shame if the best player the sox have left the team beacuse of the retarded fans. Man, this guy must feel underappreciated to the maximum amount possible. I wish I could speak to him personally and apologize for how retarded some sox fans are (not directed at you Pedro). He better not leave, he&#39;s my favorite player on the sox by far. :angry: [/b][/quote]

The Fans? All they were giving him was standing ovations.. I never demanded that he rush back. He wasn&#39;t forced to comeback pre-maturely either. If he&#39;s PLAYING, I&#39;ll assume he is ready to go... if he screws up like last night, I&#39;ll criticize him. &#092;

I respect what Nomar has done for his team as much as anybody... he&#39;s one of the best hitters I&#39;ve ever seen. Especially 1999-2000 when he was peaking the same time Pedro was. Absolutely incredible to watch.

JMDurron
06-17-2004, 08:10 AM
Originally posted by yawkeyway@Jun 17 2004, 07:47 AM
It would certainly be a shame if the best player the sox have left the team beacuse of the retarded fans.


Don&#39;t worry, if Pedro leaves, it will be solely because of money. Nomar isn&#39;t the best player on this team, nor was he last year BEFORE the slump.

That said, let me make a few things clear about Nomar.

1) I bear him no ill will for tanking in September and October last year - if Millar and Mueller didn&#39;t do it at the same time, we win the ALCS definately, and maybe the WS. It&#39;s not like he wasn&#39;t abnormally hot at the plate in April and May, as people like to forget.

2) I am not in love with A-Rod, and am perfectly ok that the trade didn&#39;t happen

3) I have not forgotten the years when Nomar was the best SS in baseball

4) I think anyone who has been claiming that Nomar was slacking off on his rehab should be dragged out into the street and shot for the benefit of maintaining a quality gene pool.

Now, here&#39;s my main beef with Nomar. He turned down a 4 year, 60 million dollar offer that was WAY above market value for him, given his performance the year before. He then complained about being "disrespected" by management when he didn&#39;t get the same offer at the end of that season...when he hadn&#39;t shown any signs of 1999-2000 still being in him. He then complained even louder about the A-Rod trade, when Nomar himself seemed to be making it fairly clear through his agent that he intends to leave town. Was the team supposed to just wait for him to leave and deal with Random Guy (Pokey as of now) at SS for the future?

I don&#39;t question Nomar&#39;s desire on the field, and I think he is clearly a key player. However, 1999-2000 is gone after the wrist injury, and Nomar needs to stop overestimating his value, then whining when the team doesn&#39;t cave in. I think this fuels a fair amount of the fan criticism, and I think Nomar&#39;s complaining about the symptons right now, as opposed to the actual illness - his previous negotiations with the team.

Pedro
06-17-2004, 08:14 AM
Excellent post as usual, JMD. I had actually forgot why I even had any beef with Nomar - It was the CONTRACT that he turned down, of course&#33; :lol:

trot4mvp
06-17-2004, 08:24 AM
Keep in mind that Nomar&#39;s anger is directed at the &#39;few&#39; rather than the &#39;many.&#39; Everyone on this board knows how great Nomar has been for Boston. I went to two games during the Sox-Dodgers series and the fans went just as crazy for Nomar as they always have. Thus, it is not the fans he is angry at, but rather a few of the low-lifes in the Boston sports media.

Personally, I can&#39;t blame the man for being upset. Trot spent plenty of time in extended spring training, A, and AAA ball. Nomar got, what, like 4 games at AAA? I give him credit for coming back so early, even though his presence may be disrupting team chemistry (especially with yesterday&#39;s media outburst).

yeszir
06-17-2004, 11:42 AM
For all his upsides, turning down that 60 million dollar contract was a dumb move. He pissed off the fans, and now he&#39;ll most likely have to take less. He&#39;s still my favorite player, but I can understand why some people are mad at him.

But I do hope that things turn better. I want him to stay like none other. I hope he starts hitting, and starts accepting our contract offers.

elsrbueno
06-17-2004, 12:32 PM
I don&#39;t think there&#39;s anyone who questions Nomar&#39;s heart when he&#39;s on the playing field. He has always (and probably always will) give 100%. I lost A LOT of respect for the off-the-field Nomar last winter, when I found out he turned down not one, but two fair contract offers from the Red Sox.

He publicly says he wants to stay, but behind closed doors it was about the &#036;&#036;&#036;

I still hope that Nomar and the Red Sox come to some sort of agreement, and Nomar spends his career in Boston. He&#39;s the type of player on the field that Boston needs. However, if he wants &#036;15mil per year, he&#39;s probably going to have to get it from George.

YanksHater213
06-17-2004, 03:16 PM
i would love to keep nomar here, but if he kees under achieving we may as well use the money in other areas