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| There goes the RBI chance, thanks man. (FULL VIDEO HERE) |
Arguably the most exciting play in all of sports, and JD Drew's bat never left his shoulder. He didn't say anything, he barely got out of the box- he simply didn't react at all. In fact, I think I even saw him mouth to the riotous crowd "Shhh keep it down, I'm trying to hit here." Can we get a pulse check over here?
JD Drew reminds me of that high school kid who hates baseball, and hates even more the fact that he's good at it. The kid whose dad had him taking 500 swings a day since he was three years old. In tee-ball he was focusing on staying inside the ball and back-spinning line drives as opposed to what flavor slushie he was gonna get at the snack stand after. He had a batting cage in the backyard and played on three different travel teams at the same time. He'd hop into the car after going 4 for 5 and his dad would sternly ask him about the flyout he hit in the 3rd. The kid who's treated baseball as a full-time job since middle school, and that's what I think it is to JD- a job.
While his teammates are hootin' and hollerin' in the dugout about the play that brought 38,000 fans to their feet, JD is back in the box racking his brain trying to remember what pitch Pettitte threw him the last time the two saw a 1-1 count. Sure you can say he's the consummate professional, but that's bullshit. Play with some emotion, some passion. Now I understand that he was still up and it was still a big spot with runners on first and second, runs that truly mattered, and I guess if he went wild celebrating Pettitte could have plunked him- but to load the bases again? I doubt it. What I do know is that the guy who used to wear number 7 and play Right Field for the Sox would have jumped on Jacoby like it was Game 7. His reaction would have made the screaming fans look tame. He was a team-first guy who never let anyone question his passion for the game. But that was Trot, and this is JD. Boring, emotionless, uninterested, dead-inside JD.
Over a year and a half later and you're still bringing up this play? Time to let it go.
ReplyDeleteAnd sure, Trot would have been jumping around. And he also probably would have then gone on to strike out in his AB because he was so distracted instead of hitting the RBI double Drew did there to plate another run in a close game. But then again Drew was able to do that specifically because he didn't let his emotions run wild to begin with.
It's the off-season. What do you talk about when there's no new baseball to talk about? Old baseball.
ReplyDeleteDrew hit that timely double because he saw the pitch well and put a good swing on it, not 'specifically' because of his controlled emotions. He had the same demeanor when he struck out his other two at-bats, so what was the specific reason for those?
It's baseball. There's no specific reason for anything. Results come as a combination of countless factors, not just emotions. There's no saying Trot couldn't have hit that same double all hopped up on adrenaline, who knows?
Last time I checked, these guys get paid to "play" ball, thus making it a job.
ReplyDeleteLay off JD, if you think you can do better, try out for his "job" otherwise, Shut your pie hole.
and he's good at his job no one's questioning that, it just sucks watching him do it.
ReplyDeleteclearly if the author is in the minor leagues than he is trying out for JD's "job". And what are you doing? Commenting anonymously on blogs. Sweet life bro.
ReplyDeletethe thing i love most about baseball is watching guys like youk and pedroia playing the game that they love. I played baseball for 12 years and the only way to play the game is by leaving everything on the field and never holding anything back. I agree with you that JD must hate the game, and that's why he's consistently average.
ReplyDelete