Phillies' Rollins isn't afraid to speak his mind
Photo credit: Getty Images | Jimmy Rollins #11 of the Philadelphia Phillies looks on after he stole second base in the top of the eighth inning against the New York Yankees in Game One. (October 28, 2009)
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Generously listed at 5-8 in the Phillies' media guide, Jimmy Rollins can be difficult to spot in a crowd, and maybe that's why he didn't hear much from the early arriving fans last night before Game 1 of the World Series.
Rollins was lost among the pack of his stretching teammates, with a red knit cap pulled down tightly for warmth. No one would blame him for hiding. Not after Rollins predicted on The Jay Leno Show that his Phillies would beat the Yankees in five games. Or, if Philly was "nice," maybe they'd "let it go six."
The Yankees mostly shrugged off Rollins' comments and acted more annoyed by the questions that followed rather then the mouthy shortstop himself. All except for Reggie Jackson, who broke the pinstriped ranks during batting practice and ventured over to speak with Rollins on the Phillies' side of the cage.
The two shook hands, laughed. Kindred spirits loving every minute of the World Series stage. Jackson earned every letter of his Mr. October title and made a career out of being one of the great Yankee villains.
Maybe he sees a lot of himself in Rollins. The Yankees might not have cared for Rollins' prediction, but Jackson's face lit up when asked about the shortstop's bravado.
"I love it," Jackson said. "I love the way he plays. I love the way he goes about it. I don't know his average or anything like that, but I know that he's a clutch player. I know that he's a big-time performer. I know he's the emotional leader of the ballclub, and he's a special player, so I admire him.
"So when he says something, he's saying the right things for his ballclub. Some guys are not looked at as braggarts. He's boasting, he's making predictions. Some guys can pull it off and some guys can't. And Jimmy gets away with it."
Rollins appeared to get off easy last night. When the Phillies were introduced, he jogged out to a surprisingly short burst of moderate boos. Even after Rollins' name was announced for his opening at-bat, the fans greeted him with another tame round.
No chants, no name-calling, nothing. Rollins has had to deal with much worse over at Citi Field during the regular season, even two years after thumbing his nose at the Mets with the infamous "Team to Beat" prediction of 2007. It wasn't until Rollins' third at-bat, in the fifth inning, that the fans finally woke up and gave a respectable boo.
Knowing Rollins, he was probably disappointed. Like Jackson, he revels in the villain's role. During media day, on the eve of Game 1, Rollins spoke for roughly 45 minutes on a variety of topics - but the biggest chunk of time was devoted to the media hysteria generated by his five-game prediction.
"You can't tell Jimmy Rollins not to be Jimmy Rollins," Ryan Howard said. "Jimmy felt it was necessary to come out and say what he said. All you can do is back him as best that you can. He's got a few predictions under his belt. Hopefully he can be right this time, too."
Rollins joked, laughed and gave as good as he got with reporters, all with the grin of someone who knows how the game is played on and off the field.
"I'm from the Bay Area and I learned how to talk trash," Rollins said. "You have to learn how to stand up and produce, and I don't play this game to not be good or not try to be great. You have to believe in yourself and sometimes you have to call yourself out in order to make yourself stand up."
Or even have 50,000 fans on your back, something that Rollins and Mr. October both have experienced - and loved every minute of it.
"I never worried about that," Jackson said. "When you're good enough, that's what happens. I've seen them boo the face of baseball - I've seen them boo Derek Jeter. That's a compliment."
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