So. The Tampa Bay Rays knew Manny Ramirez was a two-time offender of baseball's policy against performance-enhancing drugs, but decided to sign the aging slugger anyway.
And they profess surprise when he's busted a third time?
"He was disappointed in himself," Rays manager Joe Maddon said.
Really? Exactly how did he disappoint himself? By injecting himself in spite of all the Juicers Anonymous meetings he attended? By getting caught?
Ramirez, who retired at 38 rather than accept MLB's 100-game suspension, phoned Maddon — but not to say he was sorry.
"I wasn't looking for an apology necessarily," Maddon said. "I wasn't. He spoke to me kind of like, man to man, person to person, manager to player. So I didn't think he owed me an apology."
Maddon's right. The Rays weren't owed an apology — they got precisely what they deserved.
• • •
So.
Reds pitcher Mike Leake was arrested and charged with shoplifting six shirts worth $59.88 from a Cincinnati Macy's.
Yes, this is the same Leake who got a signing bonus of $2.3 million just two years ago and now makes $425,000 a season.
Ah, but we have an excuse — or at least a story.
A report has emerged claiming that what Leake did wasn't theft — just a clumsy attempt at an exchange, an "exchange" that reportedly included cutting the price tags off the shirts.
Well, if the latest story is true, there's a word for Leake: dumb.
If the latest story is false, there's another word for him: pathological.
• • •
So.
A trio of high-schoolers from Columbus, Ga. — including top prospect Deion Bonner — are invited on a recruiting visit to the University of Georgia.
They get the usual recruiting royal treatment and are allowed to roam the school's football complex — including the locker rooms — un-chaperoned.
Why not? It's not as though you have to worry about high school kids pilfering from a program they might soon play for. Right?
Wrong.
Bonner, Marquise Hawkins and an unidentified juvenile were arrested by police and charged with theft. They're accused of stealing iPods and iPhones — oh, and a pair of Nike slippers — from the lockers of seven Bulldog football players. Estimated value: $1,330.
While the police are sure they have the culprits, they don't have all the stolen merchandise. Apparently the items were peddled rather quickly. And why not? In the Twitter age, it doesn't take long to find buyers for your ill-gotten gains.
But Twitter ... Twitter ... something about that ...
Oh yeah: It's not exactly secret communication. Police who nabbed Bonner and the others credit social media for the quick arrest.
Apparently, then, not only was Bonner unprincipled enough to steal from possible future teammates, he was clueless enough to advertise the fact by tweeting.
Some are saying this indicates Bonner's unsuitability to attend a major college program.
I don't know — he looks like prime student-athlete material to me.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment