Milton Bradley reports early...

[David]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/chi-16-cubs-chicagofeb16,0,1835268.story

 

MESA, Ariz. — Perhaps not since Andre Dawson arrived at camp with a blank contract in 1987 has a free agent recruited the Cubs the way Milton Bradley did this winter.

 

"It's the Cubs," Bradley said Sunday after reporting two days early. "Who wouldn't want to play for the Cubs? Wrigley Field, already a great team in place ... I'll come in and just try to add something to that mix.

 

"They haven't won in 100 years, so you come in and have that pressure — that media word, 'pressure.' But it's not really like that. Having the opportunity to come in here and win it after all this time, that excites me."

 

After years of roaming, the veteran outfielder who turns 31 in April is the centerpiece of a revamped lineup on a contending team. He's hoping to erase his well-known image of "Meltdown Bradley" — an angry young man always on the verge of snapping.

[cubbinalltheway]

eh, what is it? a day early?

 

better than a day late though, i suppose.

[Cynosure]

eh, what is it? a day early?

 

better than a day late though, i suppose.

 

Shows he's excited about his opportunity, which from what I've read is different from all of his past teams.

[UMFan83]

Good, I think he will be a hard worker on this team.

[weis21]

Probably just the optimistic in me, but I have a really, really good feeling about Bradley on this team.

 

I know he has screwed up in the past, but I don't think he's been given a particularly fair chance lately either. Hopefully this is the fresh start that he needs.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

But is he rededicated?

[BigbadB]

Who does he think he is?

[laurens]

Who does he think he is?

 

He's visiting Z to get his black guy

[Mephistopheles]

Maybe it's then end of him being a bad apple. Hopefully he's maturing.

[dew1679666265]

Maybe it's then end of him being a bad apple. Hopefully he's maturing.

 

Now I just hope he stays healthy.

[Cynosure]

Maybe it's then end of him being a bad apple. Hopefully he's maturing.

 

Now I just hope he stays healthy.

 

If he stops putting himself in a handicap match with refs and his manager, maybe he will 8-)

[dew1679666265]

Maybe it's then end of him being a bad apple. Hopefully he's maturing.

 

Now I just hope he stays healthy.

 

If he stops putting himself in a handicap match with refs and his manager, maybe he will 8-)

 

This is an excellent point.

[Cynosure]

Maybe it's then end of him being a bad apple. Hopefully he's maturing.

 

Now I just hope he stays healthy.

 

If he stops putting himself in a handicap match with refs and his manager, maybe he will 8-)

 

This is an excellent point.

 

And I just noticed I called them refs and almost called his manager his coach... boy too much hockey this off-season.

[Balsa]

Boy, I really hope this ends well.

[chuckywang]

I've liked Bradley before and feel that he has gotten a raw deal from both the media and fans. I think he's gonna be one of my favorite Cubs this season.

[brinoch]

I'm really looking forward to watching Bradley this season. Great acquisition.

[bcl412]

If the Cubs under achieve this year a Lou vs Bradley shouting match could provide some entertainment.

[Tyrant]

I've liked Bradley before and feel that he has gotten a raw deal from both the media and fans. I think he's gonna be one of my favorite Cubs this season.

 

Despite what we're all hoping from, it's hard to say he's gotten a raw deal in the past, given his behavior.

[Roast]

I've liked Bradley before and feel that he has gotten a raw deal from both the media and fans. I think he's gonna be one of my favorite Cubs this season.

 

Despite what we're all hoping from, it's hard to say he's gotten a raw deal in the past, given his behavior.

Why? Because he threw some balls and some bats that one time? Since then he's been pretty clean. We can point to that thing with the ump last year all we want, but when you get down to it, the ump walked after HIM, not the other way around.

 

The problem is he throws some bats/balls/coolers/whatever once or twice when he's young and those images get replayed year after year after year. Now all of a sudden he's got this reputation as a nutcase when his true persona seems to be nothing of the sort.

[17 Seconds]

http://mlb.mlb.com/media/video.jsp?mid=200809133469162&c_id=tex

 

That is just this last September. I like the part where he starts flipping off the fans and yelling at them. Poor guy, he's just misunderstood.

Edited February 17, 2009 by 17 Seconds

[Tyrant]

I've liked Bradley before and feel that he has gotten a raw deal from both the media and fans. I think he's gonna be one of my favorite Cubs this season.

 

Despite what we're all hoping from, it's hard to say he's gotten a raw deal in the past, given his behavior.

Why? Because he threw some balls and some bats that one time? Since then he's been pretty clean. We can point to that thing with the ump last year all we want, but when you get down to it, the ump walked after HIM, not the other way around.

 

The problem is he throws some bats/balls/coolers/whatever once or twice when he's young and those images get replayed year after year after year. Now all of a sudden he's got this reputation as a nutcase when his true persona seems to be nothing of the sort.

 

Last year he tried to get into the Royals' press box and go after one of their broadcasters for saying things about him.

[BCVM22]

Last year he tried to get into the Royals' press box and go after one of their broadcasters for saying things about him.

 

And in Bradley's limited defense, what the Royals broadcaster in question said was stupid enough that I'd be rather unhappy with it as well. I'm not sure I'd march on the warpath to the press box, but the point remains.

[CubColtPacer]

I've liked Bradley before and feel that he has gotten a raw deal from both the media and fans. I think he's gonna be one of my favorite Cubs this season.

 

Despite what we're all hoping from, it's hard to say he's gotten a raw deal in the past, given his behavior.

Why? Because he threw some balls and some bats that one time? Since then he's been pretty clean. We can point to that thing with the ump last year all we want, but when you get down to it, the ump walked after HIM, not the other way around.

 

The problem is he throws some bats/balls/coolers/whatever once or twice when he's young and those images get replayed year after year after year. Now all of a sudden he's got this reputation as a nutcase when his true persona seems to be nothing of the sort.

 

In addition to the recent incidents that the posts before me have indicated, here is a list of the incidents that Bradley was in just up to 2005. I'm going to put them in spoiler tags because it's a little long:

 

 

* August 2005 – Three days after being confronted by Dodger second baseman Jeff Kent for not hustling, Bradley accuses Kent of badgering him all season and not understanding African Americans. After meeting with Dodger owner Frank McCourt, Bradley is diagnosed with a torn patella tendon and put on the disabled list.

 

* Summer 2005 – Police respond to reports of domestic violence at Bradley’s Redondo Beach home on June 28, July 11 and July 30. In one instance, he allegedly choked his pregnant wife, bloodied her lip and threw a cellphone into a wall. He was not arrested in any of the incidents.

 

* December 2004 – Bradley serves three days in jail stemming from an August 2003 incident in which he drove away from a police officer in Ohio before signing a speeding ticket. He pleads guilty to obstructing official business. In a separate traffic-related incident in Ohio, Bradley pleads guilty to a fourth-degree misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct stemming from a Nov. 25, 2004, arrest for yelling at a police officer. He pays a $175 fine and receives a suspended jail sentence. Bradley stopped his car after his friend had been pulled over in another car and screamed at the officer to arrest him.

 

* October 2004 – Bradley has a clubhouse confrontation with Los Angeles Times reporter Jason Reid when Reid asks Bradley about his treatment by St. Louis fans after a playoff game.

 

* September 2004 – Bradley is suspended for five games and fined $15,000 for slamming a plastic bottle at the feet of fans at Dodger Stadium after a fan threw the bottle onto the field near Bradley.

 

* June 2004 – Bradley is suspended for four games and fined $2,500 for a contentious exchange with umpire Terry Craft after being ejected. Bradley grabbed a ball bag and hurled the contents onto the field.

 

* April 2004 – Bradley is pulled from a Cleveland Indian exhibition game for not running out a pop fly that fell for a single. He argues with Manager Eric Wedge and is traded to the Dodgers two days later for top prospect Franklin Gutierrez and another minor leaguer.

 

* April 2002 – Emergency medical personnel take Bradley to a hospital after he refuses to leave a Cleveland restaurant. According to the medical report, he was severely intoxicated.

 

* April 1999 – Bradley, a Montreal prospect, is suspended for seven games for spitting gum at an umpire during a minor league game. He had been ejected for charging the mound after being hit by a pitch.

 

 

Here is the article that had this list at the end of it for the LA Times back in 05:

 

http://articles.latimes.com/2005/aug/31/sports/sp-bradley31

 

 

Bradley's reputation is completely deserved. Those incidents combined with the manager/umpire incident in 07 and the Royals broadcaster issue in 08 show a huge pattern of troubled behavior. Hopefully he can finally rise past his issues and continue to show progress. But it's certainly not because of replaying 1 or 2 incidents that Bradley has gotten the name that he has.

[Mephistopheles]

I've liked Bradley before and feel that he has gotten a raw deal from both the media and fans. I think he's gonna be one of my favorite Cubs this season.

 

Despite what we're all hoping from, it's hard to say he's gotten a raw deal in the past, given his behavior.

Why? Because he threw some balls and some bats that one time? Since then he's been pretty clean. We can point to that thing with the ump last year all we want, but when you get down to it, the ump walked after HIM, not the other way around.

 

The problem is he throws some bats/balls/coolers/whatever once or twice when he's young and those images get replayed year after year after year. Now all of a sudden he's got this reputation as a nutcase when his true persona seems to be nothing of the sort.

 

Last year he tried to get into the Royals' press box and go after one of their broadcasters for saying things about him.

 

So he's the new Kent Mercker?

[cubbinalltheway]

well, bradley is actually good. so no.