June
30, 2005: Gary Sheffield's Big Mouth
By Ahchie
Gary
Sheffield is an idiot. Plain and simple. His recent comments
should speak for themselves. Regarding a possible trade to the Mets in exchange
for Mike Cameron, Sheffield said, "I'm not going anywhere. If I have
to go somewhere, I won't go. If they said 'wouldn't you want to get paid,'
I'd say 'I've got plenty of money.' I'm not playing nowhere else, I can promise
you that."
He later said:
"If I have to go somewhere else, a lot of things are going to have to be changed or you’re going to have an unhappy player."
"I’ll ask for everything. Period. You want to inconvenience me. I’m going to inconvenience every situation there is. The only reason I’m playing is that I wanted to play for the Yankees. If I don’t get that opportunity, things change."
"I would never sit out. I'd go play, but that doesn't mean I'll be happy playing. If I'm not happy, you don't want me on your team. It's that simple. I'll make that known to anybody."
Gary, whether you are happy or not, I would not want you on my team. You have always had a boatload of talent, but you are so unprofessional and selfish that you are a cancer waiting to happen. I want someone on my team who will play hard and play to win every day no matter the situation.
Sheffield has been a head case in the past, and it is clear that he is still a head case now. He has acted unprofessionally throughout his career. If Sheffield is on a losing team or is not happy in any way, he does not produce. Instead of trying to help his team win, or trying to make his teammates better, he tanks it. He also picks his moments to play the victim, as in earlier this season when he got into it with Red Sox fans.
The attitudes revealed by Sheffield’s comments are a bitter example of one of the major things wrong with many pro athletes. These prima donnas forget that they are just people like everyone else. The difference is that they have the talent to perform at an extremely high skill level at an activity that is elevated in our culture. It is the same syndrome that hits big time actors. Sheffield seems to feel that he is so much more significant because he can combine his natural abilities to play a game with the unnatural advantages provided by steroids to become some kind of super being. His attitude is that he is even more significant than his fellow players.
Sheffield’s latest rant just makes him sound like a baby. He has obviously forgotten that he has "plenty of money" from playing a game. He knows that baseball, in addition to being a game, is also a business. Part of getting into the business of being a highly paid player is that you will move around from team to team. If he wants to stay so badly, then why doesn’t he offer to play for the Boss for the league minimum? That would be a great way to show that his desire is primarily to play for the Yanks and not to get filthy rich playing a game. And earning the league minimum is a far cry from poverty level. When athletes go off on such issues they just sound silly, ignorant, arrogant and out of touch with the world that the rest of us live in.
June 29: Sheffield miffed at reported trade rumors
Gary Sheffield does not want to play for the Mets or any team other than the Yankees this season.
"I'm not going anywhere," Sheffield told The New York Times on Wednesday. The Yankees and Mets reportedly were in discussions about a possible Sheffield-for-Mike Cameron swap.
"If I have to go somewhere, I won't go," the Yankees' slugger told The Times. "If they said 'wouldn't you want to get paid', I'd say 'I've got plenty of money.' I'm not playing nowhere else, I can promise you that."
Sheffield is signed through 2006 and does not have a no-trade clause in his contract. He signed a three-year, $39 million contract in December 2003.
The Yankees reportedly are interested in upgrading their defense by placing Cameron in center. The Mets would add another powerful bat to the middle of their order with Sheffield, who plays right field for the Yankees.
Sheffield seemed to hedge in another interview with MLB.com, saying he would want concessions for signing off on any trade.
"If I have to go somewhere else, a lot of things are going to have to be changed or you're going to have an unhappy player," Sheffield told MLB.com.
"I'll ask for everything. Period. You want to inconvenience me, I'm going to inconvenience every situation there is," he added. "The only reason I'm playing is that I wanted to play for the Yankees. If I don't get that opportunity, things change."
Sheffield, who negotiated his current contract personally with Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, did say that he wouldn't hold out if he were to be traded.
"I would never sit out," Sheffield told MLB.com. "I'd go play, but that doesn't mean I'll be happy playing. If I'm not happy, you don't want me on your team. It's that simple. I'll make that known to anybody."
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