To be fair, I do think ESPN SportsCenter did go over the line in its portrayal of Molina in that situation. If Bristol was going to air such a clip, it should’ve been on SportsNation or Jim Rome is Burning. Not in the context of objective news coverage.
Look, you can say I’m the slowest guy in baseball or in all of sports or in the entire world. I don’t take issue with that because I AM the slowest guy. I have always been the slowest guy. I can’t challenge that criticism. But ESPN’s intention was not to criticize but to humiliate.
I take what I do very seriously, which is why – despite my obvious lack of speed – I have managed to play in the major leagues for 11 seasons. I play hard. I play hurt. I respect the game, my teammates, the press, the fans. That’s how I was raised. It was the No. 1 thing.
I know I’m a public figure and I just have to take my lumps. But I would like those people at ESPN who, from a safe distance, make fun of players for a cheap laugh, to remember that players are actual people.
A big part of me thinks that Molina should develop some thicker skin. I don’t think ESPN was trying to humiliate him with the clip. I think they were making light of something that everyone already knows — Bengie Molina is slow. ESPN would have been better served had they highlighted a good play or two that Molina made to help the Giants win, but this clip was no different than the “Not Top 10” that SportsCenter runs regularly. No one sad that Molina didn’t hustle to try to score, but it was funny to see him thrown out given the lead he had on the ball. He should just shrug his shoulders and laugh it off.
In the end, SportsCenter is entertainment. Yes, there is serious sports discussion and analysis, but part of what has made SportsCenter great over the years is the show’s sense of humor. I think making light of someone’s foot speed (with regard to an athletic contest) is well within the limits of good taste. They should just take the time to highlight some of Molina’s good plays as well. He’s a long-time MLB catcher for a reason.
Before the first know-it-all reminds me, I’m fully aware that the 2010 MLB season is only 13 games old. We’re not even a quarter of the way through the season and considering teams go on winning and losing streaks all the time, it’s hardly time to hit the panic button.
That said, what the hell was that, Red Sox?
The Rays are a damn fine baseball club, one that will compete for the AL Wild Card throughout the year as long as their pitching stays consistent. I’m completely fine with residing to the fact that the Rays are just better than the Red Sox, but even as good as Tampa is, its not that good to walk into Fenway and make Boston look like the Orioles. In their four-game sweep, the Rays outscored Boston 24-9 even though they faced Josh Beckett, Jon Lester and John Lackey. That’s unprecedented.
The Red Sox are now 4-9 to start he season, which is their worst record after 13 games in 15 years. Given how good their pitching is and how much veteran talent they have on their roster, the Sox aren’t going to be this bad all season. In fact, they could easily put together a nice run over the next couple weeks, get back to .500 and put this slow start behind them.
Giants 5, Braves 4 Quick, name the team with the best record in baseball. The Yankees? Sorry – they’re currently only .500. The answer would be the Giants, who have begun the year 4-0 after coming from behind to the beat the Braves 5-4 in 13 innings on Friday. Quick, name the hottest hitter in the league right now. If you said Albert Pujols, then punch yourself in the ear because you’re wrong. If you said Edgar Renteria, you’re right, but you probably only said that to be a wiseass – so the jokes on you. Renteria is batting an astonishing .688 to start the year after going 3-for-5 with a game-tying two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth, which helped San Fran erase a 4-2 deficit. I don’t know how Pablo Sandoval slimmed down and stole Renteria’s jersey without anyone seeing, but there’s no way that’s the real Edgar Renteria.
Rangers 6, Mariners 2 Nelson Cruz abused the Mariners on Friday, going 3-for-4 with a solo homer, two RBI and two runs scored in the Rangers’ 6-2 victory. Seattle is hitting .199 as a team and was 0 for 7 with runners in scoring position. It was the club’s fourth straight loss and making matters worse, it was revealed that Cliff Lee might not come off the disabled list until May now.
Royals 4, Red Sox 3 It’s early, but you know things are bad in Boston when they’re losing to Kansas City. Rick Ankiel (yes, that Rick Ankiel) hit a go-ahead two-run single off Daniel Bard in the eighth inning of the Royals’ 4-3 win over the BoSox on Friday night. It was the fourth hit of the night for Ankiel, who also hit a solo home run and drove in three runs. Not a bad night for the newcomer, who helped sent Boston spiraling to a 1-3 start.
Yankees 6, Red Sox 4 Newcomer Marco Scutaro didn’t endear himself to many Red Sox fans on Tuesday night when he botched a routine ground ball in the eighth inning of a 4-4 game. Reliever Hideki Ojajima then walked Nick Johnson with the bases loaded to give the Yankees a 5-4 lead and the Mariano Rivera closed out the ninth. Considering the BoSox signed Scutaro for his defense, it wasn’t a good start for the former Blue Jay. The error made Boston fans pine for the days of Julio Lugo, who…all right sorry, I couldn’t continue with that joke. Red Sox fans would rather see Scutaro botch nine more throws than ever see Lugo in a Boston uniform again.
Giants 3, Astros 0 The Astros probably figured that they caught a break when Bruce Bochy decided to throw Barry Zito in between starts by Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain in Houston’s opening three-game series with the Giants. But the joke was on the Stros, as Zito completely shut them down for six innings. He allowed no runs on three hits while striking out five, proving that he was indeed worth the seven-year, $126 million contract he signed in December in ’06. No? Ah well – it was still a nice outing for the former Cy Young pitcher. Now Houston gets to deal with Cain tomorrow – good luck with that.
Rays 4, Orioles 3 Carl Crawford played the hero for the Rays on Tuesday night, knocking in the game-winning two-run single off Orioles’ closer Mike Gonzalez. It was Crawford’s only hit of the game, but it came at a crucial time. When asked about his dramatic hit afterwards, Crawford replied: “I know, right? Maybe the Rays should pony up for that new contract now – hahahaha…ahhh. Just kidding. But for realsies – where’s my contract?”
Padres 6, Diamondbacks 3 Chris Young managed to deliver his best Jake Peavy impression on Tuesday night, allowing no runs on one hit over six innings of work in San Diego’s win over Arizona. Young also struck out five to earn his first victory of the year. If Young’s shoulder is completely repaired, there’s no reason he can’t post similar numbers to the ones he produced in 2006 (11-5, 3.46 ERA). He’s really, really good…for a max of about six innings. But still – he’s good.
