Pierzynski

[Backtobanks]

OK-I've got to ask the question-

 

What has AJP done during his career that is so bad that he is being compared to John Rocker?

 

As far as I can tell-

 

He has a big mouth. That's a given. But until this weekend, I've never read a quote from him ripping on a teammate, or even a competitor. And his criticism of Barrett has been relatively mild, given the seriousness of the situation. He's never said anything racist, homophobic or even mildly insulting.

 

Someone took a picture of him doing shots at a bar with two good looking women. He is apparently the only MLB player to do shots with women in a bar? And of course, we have to assume they had sex afterward?

 

He's a "clubhouse cancer". Nothing negative was ever said by his Minn teammates-ever. Gardenhire goes out of his way to make positive comments. Ortiz is quoted today saying what a great teammate AJP was to him. The team won consistently while he was there. It appears the only clubhouse he didn't get along in was SF's which is notoriously disfunctional. Since he became a starter in 2001, his teams have won 3 division titles, one pennant and one WS. How much of a cancer can he be?

 

He got punched in the face by Barrett after a clean play, one that AJP has been on the other end of many times.

 

He doesn't fight, get thrown out of games, treat fans or meda poorly. No arrests, domestic batteries, DUI, drug allegations. If the umpires are annoyed by his mouth, they sure don't show it.

 

Someone help me here, I must be missing something. How can merely having a big mouth (without using it to trash others) put anyone on a public enemy list?

 

I don't have any first-hand information, but with everything that is covered up in sports, a reputation like AJ's has to have a bunch of facts attached to it. When sportswriters across the country call him one of the most hated players in baseball, there has to be a reason. When other players consistently call him a jerk and an a**, there has to be a reason. Mariotti said it best when he compared him to Eddie Haskell.

[South Side]

He kneed his trainer in the balls while playing for the SF Giants. Paraphrased:

 

"Are you okay?"

"No"

"Well, how bad does it hurt?"

"About THIS hard!" *smash*

 

I've heard this one too, but it doesn't pass the smell test-

 

The trainer claims it happened during an exhibition game in Arizona (and I think we all know about the integrity of the SF training staff).

 

He claims that AJP took a ball to the nuts. When he went out to see if he was OK, AJP kneed him in the nuts. At home plate, in front of thousands of people. Yet the story went unreported until the day Pierzynski signed with the White Sox (10 months later). One writer claimed it happened when all the beat writers weren't looking, therefore it went unreported. Of course, thousands of witnesses saw and said nothing either. And no member of either team mentioned it to any writers when it happened. Right.

 

And no, I don't want to marry him. I just don't want to see the game woosified to the point where players who play hard are ripped on for it. And that's exactly where we are headed with this.

 

 

The pitchers in SF had all kinds of problems with AJP. Apparently he wouldn't go over opposing batters with them. There were all sorts of comments about him not being a good teammate, etc..

 

Brett Tomko was the Giants pitcher who had a problem with Pierzynski, and went to the newspapers with it (allegedly without discussing with AJP first).

 

Interestingly, originally Ken Williams was not going to consider signing Pierzynski, based on Tomko's comments. He changed his mind after being convinced by the newly acquired Dustin Hermanson (also from SF of course) that the problems were Tomko's, and not the opinion of the pitching staff, which caused Williams to talk to a few other former teammates who backed up Hermanson.

[brewfandave]

Here are my thoughts as a non-Cub fan:

 

I get the feeling that Pierzynski's a jerk. I don't see him as a Tavarez- or Farnsworth-style brawler, but the kind of guy who'll needle and annoy opposing players.

 

On the Zambrano thing, anybody with eyes and a brain could tell that he was going right at Zambrano after hitting that home run. I say good for him.

 

Zambrano is like an angry child whose temper tantrums are glossed over by his parents, but as soon as somebody else gets angry or mean they're labelled the enemy. Anybody who has to be restrained when somebody makes fun of his antics that he uses to show other people up needs to grow up.

 

So, one's a jerk who runs his mouth too much and likes to show up opposing pitchers, and the other's a jerk with an anger problem who likes to show up opposing hitters. They're a perfect match.

 

Mind you, this is from a guy who thought the play at the plate was clean, somebody should give Zambrano a permanent baseball earring when he's at the plate when he's pulling his showboating crap, and who would have cheered for the Bonds beaning if he were at the game in Houston.

 

Just so you know where I'm coming from.