Albert Pujols, the Rangers' offense and the Theo Epstein resolution
Greeetings from Texas.
At yesterday's workout at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, while David Lennon wrote about the Rangers' offense, I wrote about Albert Pujols and the fact that he didn't face reporters' questions after Thursday night's Game 2.
We see this issue pop up every now and then; it did earlier this season with new Yankee Rafael Soriano. A common refrain in the yakosphere (trademark Neil Best) is, "Oh, boo hoo for the reporters, they don't get their quotes for their stories!"
To which I always respond, "It's really not about the reporters. It's about Pujols' obligation to his teammates."
I really do think there's a cultural gulf on this between the Cardinals and, say, the Yankees. Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez speak after every playoff game, regardless of their impact on the contest. They get it. They don't have to be informed by a media-relations official. A request doesn't have to be submitted by anyone in the media. It just happens.
It clearly isn't that way with the Cardinals, a team that is so popular that they feel they don't need the media as much as other clubs. The idea that a formal request would have to be submitted to speak to Pujols, on a night when he committed a critical error - let alone the notion that he should be speaking after every postseason game - is very foreign to me and, I'd say comfortably, most others in the baseball industry.
--Theo Epstein is officially with the Cubs, where he'll be the president of baseball operations and joined by his old Red Sox pals Jed Hoyer (who will be general manager) and Jason MacLeod, both of whom were most recently with San Diego. Josh Byrnes, a finalist for the Mets' GM opening last year, will take over the Padres.
It's quite a team the Cubs have assembled, putting them in good shape for the future. And it's a deserved second chance for Byrnes, whose GM run with Arizona ended poorly after a promising beginning.
More on this after Tuesday's news conferences.
--Have a great day.
