a700hitter

He pitched in 2008 for Oakland. I'm not being harsh to Foulke. I think he is great. I am not saying that he is a bad person or that he has bad character. I am just saying that walking away from the game in 2007 was not an honorable act worthy of any note. If Foulke is a folk-hero, it is because of his onfield accomplishments. The way he left the game in 2007 was nothing special.

Foulke was lazy. I've got nothing against being lazy. That's okay, but let's not elevate it to an honorable quality. He came back the next season and sucked.

If they paid me $5 million to play, I'd show up and try my hardest to play. If I was physically unable to perform, I'd have lived up to my end of the contract. If I decided not to show up and try to play, I wouldn't expect a check, nor would I ask for one. The Sox signed Juan Gonzalez a few years ago. He never showed up. Do you think the Red Sox paid him. Foulke didn't want to play, so he didn't show up. If he wanted the $5 million, he would have had to show up and go through the Guardians program (i.e, treatment, physical therapy, rehab assignmentsetc.) for the entire season. That's work, not stealing. He didn't do the work so he wasn't entitled to get paid. If he showed up for his check without doing the work, the Guardians would have told him to get lost.

Should have signed jackie Robinson and Willie Mays too.

The Sox should have fired their doctor's. They didn't do their job. Schilling did his job. He maximized his earning potential.

Personally, I think Foulke was a schmuck in this regard. As long as someone is willing to pay you exorbitant amounts to play baseball, you should do it. When being paid to play, you should also give a 100% effort to play. The career of a major league ballplayer is limited even for the best players, so they should maximize their earning potential. To do otherwise is financially irresponsible. The "he wanted to go out on top" argument makes me sick. There are very few icons who have public images and legacies that need protecting. Babe Ruth got cut by the Yankees. Mantle was a shell at the end. Most players (even the greats) have the uniform torn off their backs and that's the way it should be. Does it tarnish their image? If it does, it is does not do so in any meaningful way. It's hard to find a better paying job. Edit: The biggest schmuck of all time IMO was Ryne Sandberg who walked away from the last 2 years of his biggest contract to spend more time with his family. Within 3 weeks of walking away in midseason, his wife filed for divorce, and the next spring he was back begging for his job. They gave him his job back at an 85% cut in pay. No wonder that his wife divorced the moron.

Agreed. That's why the contract was only for $8 million and not $16 million.

He would have had to go through camp, drills etc. His injuries were nagging, but not disabling. He pitched the following season without undergoing surgery. He was worn down and his body needed the rest. The team was not going to give him his check and let him go home because his knees hurt. He would have had to go for treatments etc. When he improved, he would have been required to go for a rehab assignment etc. He wouldn't be able to show up and say he didn't feel like playing and get a check. Yes, he could have gone through the motions, but they weren't going to just let him go home with a check. He didn't want to go through the motions, so he forfeit the check.

Who cares what the players steal from team owners. Team owners and management made a bad deal. Too bad for them. Did they give Pedroia a retroactive raise for 2008 commensurate with his MVP year? No, they didn't. Business is business. Caveat emptor-- let the buyer beware. As for Foulke, he did not want to report to camp, get in shape and attempt to pitch. He didn't want to make the effort to show up. It would have been a bit ridiculous if he didn't show up but demanded his check... don't you think?

Willis got the win. 6 1/3 inn 0 runs 1 hit 2BB 5 k's

Splendid idea!

It is not a good sign that Wakefield has been the team's best starter.

Like a young Mo.

Are you predicting any wall ball singles?

Letting pop flys drop in the infield and getting thrown out at third for the first out of the 8th inning--- these are things that losing teams do. If they lose, they deserve it.

Stupid play by Ellsbury with none out and in need of an insurance run.

Wake up offense!!! Is this going to be another late inning crusher?

Dontrelle Willis has given up 0 runs on 1 hit after 6 innings against Texas.

Ortiz couldn't do anything with that pitch. he should have taken that pitch.

They should be crushing this bozo Tallet.

Oh, I still don't agree that the only way to judge an offensive player is with reference to his defensive position. That maybe true for picking fantasy teams, but that's about it. Lead off hitters are a different type of offensive player. They are the catalysts for the offense. Most have speed, but others do not, and they compensate with great bat control and high OBP. Leadoff hitters throughout the ages have played many different positions. I judge them against other lead off hitters in evaluating their performance and their careers. As for all other players, I rate their offensive performance against each other regardless of their defensive position. I don't lump them into defensive positions which are irrelevant to their offensive production. I still don't agree with your irrelevant argument, but i got tired of arguing about it. After all, it was irrelevant to my factual assertion.