Monday, February 16, 2004
FINAL FOR THREE?
In something that slipped under my radar for Sunday, Larry LaRue had an article where he interviewed the three longtime Mariners who could see their last seasons in a Mariner uniform in 2004: Edgar Martinez, John Olerud, and Dan Wilson. Supplementary quotes are provided in the article from Bret Boone and Lee Pelekoudas.
Notables:
Edgar -- "I seriously thought about retiring after the 2002 season. My legs hurt, my shoulder was so bad I took myself out of the final game that year - I just couldn't swing anymore. There were so many little things that hurt, it just drained me ... Year to year, you see yourself slowing down. I was never fast, but whatever speed I had is gone. If I weren't the designated hitter, I couldn't have played last year with the broken toe. I couldn't move side to side."
Olerud -- "I identified with Bruce Bochte, and at that stage of my life I liked guys because they swung left-handed like I did, or because I liked their number. I loved Bob Stinson. He helped coach one of my Pony League teams. ... You don't want to stay (in baseball) too long. The last thing you want is to play a year more than you should have, and be hitting .200 in June and have your manager asking 'What am I going to do with this guy?' "
Wilson -- "I think your body tells you when it's the right time (to retire), and sometimes the game tells you," Wilson said. "If the game tells you, it's probably too late to leave gracefully."
This was a very worthy read. There was no reporter-spun Mariner corporate line bullcrap. The players provided most of the material and LaRue filled in the gaps. There's nothing really to bitch about in the article, it's just interesting to hear what the players think sometimes, that's all.
Notables:
Edgar -- "I seriously thought about retiring after the 2002 season. My legs hurt, my shoulder was so bad I took myself out of the final game that year - I just couldn't swing anymore. There were so many little things that hurt, it just drained me ... Year to year, you see yourself slowing down. I was never fast, but whatever speed I had is gone. If I weren't the designated hitter, I couldn't have played last year with the broken toe. I couldn't move side to side."
Olerud -- "I identified with Bruce Bochte, and at that stage of my life I liked guys because they swung left-handed like I did, or because I liked their number. I loved Bob Stinson. He helped coach one of my Pony League teams. ... You don't want to stay (in baseball) too long. The last thing you want is to play a year more than you should have, and be hitting .200 in June and have your manager asking 'What am I going to do with this guy?' "
Wilson -- "I think your body tells you when it's the right time (to retire), and sometimes the game tells you," Wilson said. "If the game tells you, it's probably too late to leave gracefully."
This was a very worthy read. There was no reporter-spun Mariner corporate line bullcrap. The players provided most of the material and LaRue filled in the gaps. There's nothing really to bitch about in the article, it's just interesting to hear what the players think sometimes, that's all.
/ Click for main page
