On Sunday I wished that my two baseball boyfriends wouldn't ruin my Thanksgiving morning by signing with other clubs on that day. So I guess it was polite of Joe Nathan to sign with the Texas Rangers on Monday.
But, I gotta admit that I still pretty bummed. Ok, really bummed. I know that I can say "no interesting" to whoever it is pitching in the ninth inning and driving me nuts, but it won't be the same. It'll never be the same.
His whole nervous pacing, huffing and puffing, and lip blowing routine is exactly why love watching him pitch. Plus, he always seemed like a great guy.
I know he wasn't his best after coming back from Tommy John surgery, but toward the end of the season, he was really improving. I'm fully convinced that his velocity and his slider will be back to 100% in 2012. So I was really hoping he'd sign with the Twins again.
I kind of knew when he took that dirt off the pitching mound after the final Twins game in 2011 that he didn't think he was coming back. Some of the beat reporters were kind of hinting that he was kind of hinting that he wanted to play for a winning team. I can't blame him for that. I wonder if the Minnesota's saves leader was really more disillusioned by the Twins than he was letting on. Of course, we'll never know; he's too classy to say.
I sincerely hope he has success in Texas. I'll never not like him, so I'm glad he made it easy on me and went to the team that captured my imagination the last two years.
Good luck, Joe. And remember ... no interesting; I'll be watching.
3 comments:
he'll always be MY closer no matter where he goes.. It just won't (and never was) the same without him.
My understanding was that Nathan turned down a chance to be traded to a contender near the deadline. If he was so concerned about playing for a winner, this seems strange to me.
Dear Mr. Bob:
Thanks for reading.
My understanding about Joe declining to waive his no-trade clause is that the Twins didn't have a trade partner in place. The rules say that the player has to waive the no-trade a couple days before he can be placed on waivers. The Twins wanted him to do it just in case something came up, but it was really only a paperwork deal. At that time of the season, he would have had to pass through waivers before being traded. Considering the uncertainty of the waiver process (really, who wants to be picked picked up by the Astros off waivers?), I can understand Joe's reluctance.
Post a Comment