Jim Thome - 40 years old today. He was 21 when he made his Major League debut
Words of wisdom (again) from Rob Dibble:
“So for me, a little bit has to be put back on Strasburg here. Ok, you throw a pitch, it bothers your arm, and you immediately call out the manager and the trainer? Suck it up, kid. This is your profession. You chose to be a baseball player. You can’t have the cavalry come in and save your butt every time you feel a little stiff shoulder, sore elbow.
“I mean, excuse me. There’s guys I played with that had screws holding their elbows together. Chris Sabo played two weeks on a broken ankle. I put a steel plate in my wrist so I could be back in five weeks instead of three months. So, this is your choice. You can either suck it up and be a man at 22 making $2 million a year [with] a $15 million contract, or every time you get an ache and pain you can go out of the game and say I’m gonna let down the other 24 guys right here and possibly en
Chris Sabo’s baseball career lasted eight seasons. Dibble’s lasted seven. It occurs to me that playing while you are injured is possibly not the best way to extend your career and keep collecting those million dollar contracts. Something you might want to think about, Rob.
To say nothing of the fact that young Mr. Strasburg is on his way to Tommy John surgery. So not only was Dibble being an arrogant jerk but he was about as wrong as he could ever be.
Surgery on the arm of a pitcher is nothing to take lightly. Kyle Snyder has now had five surgeries on his arm and is currently working toward his arm hopefully becoming strong again. Anything could happen to Strasburg: He could be back healthy and as strong and good as ever, or he could come back a different pitcher and not the superstar he’s been projected to become. It’s definitely something anyone with half a brain would be concerned about so I suppose it shouldn’t surprise me that Dibble was totally off the mark here. Instead of paying him to speak, maybe the Nationals should pay him to shut the hell up. Just a suggestion.
I wouldn’t say that this weekend series with the Rays has me worried or anxious but I am a bit excited. While I’m being realistic about this season, the Red Sox doing well this weekend would make things a whole lot more interesting.
The best news of the weekend? National television only snatched up one of the weekend games. So while we get stuck with Morgan and Miller on Sunday we are at least saved from Buck and McCarver (tonight and tomorrow’s games are at 7:10/Sunday’s at 8pm).
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