Would you welcome Giambi back to the A's?

by danh on Dec 3, 2004 11:18 PM PST Comment 15 comments

Let's fantasize for a moment that the Yankees have to eat the rest of his contract or are able to work out a buyout with him that gets approved... and that the A's could get him for very little money.. Would you welcome him back?

This question has at least two components. The first is whether you could forgive him for leaving the A's for the Yank-me's, and forgive him for his steroid past. The second, and i think more interesting part, is how do you view his future as a baseball player? Do you believe his past success was primarily due to steroids, that his body is too damaged from years of steroids and living hard, etc.? Or do you think/hope that he is capable of being someone that can hit for power and average again?

Would you enjoy watching him play?

Of course, there's also the dimension of where would he fit in -- in the past, he's injured too often to count on for an everyday first baseman, and we've got durazo for DH, and hatty already at first.

My own answers: I can forgive him and would enjoy watching him as an A again. I think he can get healthy and succeed without steroids. A recovered Giambi would be a great presence in the lineup.

(and a side question: how long are steroids detectable; how often would you have to test someone to know that they're not taking any?)

Poll

Would you welcome Giambi back to the A's?

No, the Curse of the Giambi will keep the Yanks from ever winning again

7 votes

You mean Jeremy Giambi, right?

3 votes

Hell yeah!

9 votes

Only if the Yank's eat 99% of his contract

31 votes

Only if Giambi agrees to read the book Fast Food Nation

1 votes

Only as a batboy

7 votes

No, but i think the Niners could use him

14 votes

72 votes | Poll has closed

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FUCK NO!

like i said...

by clatino on Dec 4, 2004 1:22 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

No

Maybe a few seasons down the road, when Giambi is a veteran player who's cleaned up his act and is looking for redemption, but not now. Certainly not now.

No one who claims that steroids "tarnish the game" has any credibility if he/she knowingly cheers for a player on 'roids. You can't say that steroids are bad for baseball and then look the other way while your clean-up hitter puts up 40 homer seasons.

If you don't care that certain players are on juice and just want to revel in the extra dingers... well, that's your choice. But I really don't see how anyone can think along those lines. Maybe I don't know enough Giants fans.

by dchu on Dec 4, 2004 1:25 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

I agree to some extent.

Maybe over time I and others might get past the 'roids, assuming he learns his lesson and pays his dues for earning back fans' respect.

Harder to forgive are the comments he made about Oakland. But if "took it back" and proved he was truly sorry, he might win back the fans eventually, but not until a few years have passed.

It's really more up to him and what he does now over the next couple of years than what we think of him right now. The current emotional reaction is intense, and that makes it hard to entertain the idea of eventual forgiveness.

by Pepper on Dec 4, 2004 1:32 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Hell no

To use the milder expletive.

I want Jason Giambi never to enter a major league park without wearing pinstripes. Let him be their $115M washed-up albatross.

by Nate on Dec 4, 2004 1:26 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

hell YES!

Are you kidding? Talk about poetic justice! Giambi tops off his A's career with consecutive MVP-caliber seasons, gets $120 mill from the Yankees but leaves his skills behind in Oakland, and has such an all-around shitty 2004 that the Yankees are absolutely DESPERATE to unload him. Health issues, the disgrace of getting caught cheating ... he is at the absolute bottom of the barrel ... as undervalued as a player can get.

Hello, Moneyball! Talk about upside! As for people saying they wouldn't forgive him, tell me: would you honestly be able to say that if he hit 40 homers for us and hit .330? Of course we'd forgive him then! And if he continues to suck--well then we could boo him all the time! It's a win-win!

by rubin sierra on Dec 4, 2004 2:29 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

replying to myself

Yikes--I just reminded myself of Steven A. Smith being interviewed about Ron Artest. He was like, "he's a very troubled individual, he needs a lot of health, a bad influence on any team ... But the Pacers could go REALLY far if they can get him back for the playoffs!"

Snap out of it! Ron Artest is a cancer and the Pacers would be out of their minds to put him on their playoff roster. Similarly, Jason Giambi just got caught doping, and has been suffering from tumors and parasites--the most we can hope for is that he gets healthy, stays clean and is able to play professional baseball again. But yes I would be happy to see him do that in an A's uniform; I think the A's could pay him less than he's worth, and I harbor nothing but pity toward him at this point in time.

by rubin sierra on Dec 4, 2004 2:49 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Yes

I would love for him to come talk to the team about the horrors of roids and show them what can happen if they start or don't stop taking the junk.

by Satchmo22 on Dec 4, 2004 2:50 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

Giambi

Without roids, he's probably a slightly-better version of Scott Hatteberg. If he comes cheaper than Hatteberg, and if we have nobody to play DH/1B yes, I'd take him back. However, with Dan Johnson (1B/DH), John Baker (C/1B/DH), and Jeremy Brown (C/DH) around the corner, I don't think we need him anymore.

by OaktownTribesman on Dec 4, 2004 8:16 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

times have changed

Isn't it remarkable that just a few years ago it was heartbreaking to find that Giambi couldn't be signed and wondering how we would ever replace him and now (even steroids cheating issue aside) his talent has slid so far that he seems roughly comprable to Hatteberg and prospects. Goes to show that the future really is unknowable. Be careful what you wish for--it seems to have bitten both Giambi and the Yankees in the butt.

by batgirl on Dec 4, 2004 12:12 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Without hesitation

Any scenario that results in Giambi's return to the A's can only have upside to it. Think of it - the A's will only bring him back if it makes sense financially. This implies that Steinbrenner's wallet will continue to be drained twice a month to pay off Giambi's contract. How this would eventually be worked out remains unclear - the Player's Association obviously will meddle with any attempt to "devalue" Giambi's current contract. If Giambi is wearing an A's uniform at little or no expense to Oakland mgmt, then his real value becomes more clear. The guy will obviously be more comfortable playing in Oakland then he ever was in the Bronx. Presuming his health has stabilized he becomes a valuable veteran presence in the clubhouse. Given the chance to redeem himself, I'm certain Giambi would go out of his way to preach against the use of steroids and to serve as a mentor to the younger players in the Oakland organization. In relating his experiences in the Bronx, Giambi might actually persuade potential free agents that it could be better to stay in Oakland where they'd be happy and take a little less money than depart for greener pastures (and who knows what else)like he did. Anything he contributes with his bat or glove would be icing on the cake. To be honest, I think the guy made a very foolish mistake. What he did is cheating; no way to deny it. But I think the guy deserves a second chance. I'd welcome Giambi back without hesitation. How great would it be to see him hit a walkoff job to beat the Yankees???

by thenewyorker on Dec 4, 2004 11:30 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

The key is the money

If the A's somehow could get Jason for Hatteberg money, then it probably would be a good deal, and perhaps the best thing for him.

Remember, he testified before the 2004 season, and couldn't know what was in store.

Look at his stats. He'll be 34 next year. His career shows a bell curve peaking in 2000-2001 with OPS of 1.123 and 1.137. His three years withe the Yanks have seen 1.033, .939, and last year's pitiful, and certainly aberrant .721. Based on typical patterns, does anyone think he can return to 200-2001 levels at age 34 or older?

It is unlikely.

Still, if he was able to perform as he did his first four full years -- .836 to .975 OPS -- and if he could play 140+ games a year, he'd be a steal.

As for the steroids, yes, it is cheating. But contrast Jason's Grand Jury testimony with Bonds. Who clearly was telling all the truth? Who was telling as little as possible? How can Giambi come out of this whole thing worse off in the public mind than Bonds?

Well, he admitted taking steroids, so baseball doesn't have to risk anything by punishing him for them as it might with Barry. So maybe he gets hammered more.

But is it good for baseball to share Barry's total mystification at what doping schedules and invoices for banned substances containing Bonds' name means?

The key to Jason's future is his health. I don't see how he can be banned from baseball. It appears he is not under threat of criminal prosecution for perjury. He really wanted to play in pinstripes. Perhaps he will conclude that his rehabilitation will happen better outside New York.

As for the money, I don't think it matters to Steinbrenner if he wants to get rid of Jason. The biggest impediment to any deal is probably the union.

by dingerpower on Dec 4, 2004 12:35 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Bring back Giambi as a veteran leader

Assuming Giambi wishes to gain back respect he has lost in all of this, I'd say bring him back as a veteran leader. This is a role that Chavy neither wants nor is ready for. I don't think there is anyone else ready to step up to the plate and be the kind of leader he was for us before. Last year we had quite a few veteran players (McLemore, Hatteberg, Miller) however none of them were leaders (a la Giambi, Justice, or Miggy). Even if he only puts up average numbers, clubhouse leadership cannot be underestimated. Considering we would get him for next to nothing, it is worth the risk.

by stevea on Dec 4, 2004 2:17 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

We already have a better DH

Billy, you have our attention, ...is 2005 our year for the trophy?

by A s Eh on Dec 4, 2004 3:07 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Giambi's a lemming, not a leader.

Durazo is 3x better and anyone at 1B is 2x-10x better.

He is a burn out now.

The A's can't help him and Giambi can't help anyone.

Billy, you have our attention, ...is 2005 our year for the trophy?

by A s Eh on Dec 4, 2004 3:18 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Leader?

How can Giambi be a leader? He's been publicly humiliated and exposed as a fraud. He has no standing with anybody. Not to mention he could be "leading" our guys down the wrong path.

by OaktownTribesman on Dec 4, 2004 3:23 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs