Bradley and his comments....

by norcalfan on Aug 5, 2007 10:52 PM PDT Comment 30 comments

Just my opinion.......

I don't post too often any more, but read everyday. Although there still seems to be a split opinion on AN regarding MB, mainly fueled by cutthemullet, the thing I can't get over is the track record.

We have been an overachieving club, much to my content, when weighed against other freespending teams, (everyone less tampa bay) yet thanks to Billy or possibly the regime prior to...we have been in the playoffs year in and year out. It was clear, to me at least, that last year was our "big shot". We gave it all last year and made a real run at it. This year had low expectation across the boards and maybe MB was correct in saying that things "changed" this year from the start. There is only so long a team of our budget can compete when we run out of type A and B players to lose and the picks we get in return. We need to reload and recharge and that appears to be starting with cutting our losses. MB was without question one of my favorite players, but so was Hudson, Miggy, Johnny and the list could go on and on all the way back to Mac. Gone are the days of Capt Carney to say the least. After enduring the year so far and reading the Bradley article a few things have become apparent to me,

Race card....sound familier?

If you thought Thomas was going to be an A this year, the world series must still seem a realistic goal now.

Bradley did something to personally offend BB prior to this joke of a DFA. I am guessing a purposefully "leaked" comment.

When was it bad buisiness sense to save money when hope has been extinguished? Further, how would it be smart to NOT do so?

If certain attitudes do not mesh with the new direction of a franchise, and it is well known said attitudes would vocalize.......is it a good idea to subject the "future" players of the club with that bad taste. I'm guessing no.

I would take Kendall over Bradley in a heartbeat this year....he played.

Bad apples ruin bushels.

If we can't turst the brass now....could we ever?

I am not happy with the standings this year so far, but I have still watched some fun baseball. It is no secret we need bats next year but who is to say we won't get them in the offseason or find some life internally. That is the beauty of baseball....parity. All I care about is simply avoiding an Athletics drought of four years and I believe moving forword the best thing to do right now is and was to trim the fat and move forword.

Piazza - Oprah
Kendall - Arnold
Kielty - pre slim fast lasorda
Training Staff - Fat Bastard
Bradley -..........jabba the hut

Moving on to an injury free '08
LET'S GO OAKLAND!!
Go A's 2008!!

Poll

With Current A's direction

Playoffs in '08

25 votes

Playoffs in '09

27 votes

Athletics four year drought

17 votes

Playoffs in new stadium

9 votes

devaluing the team for quick sale to vegas

4 votes

who cares...just fire the trainers!!

29 votes

111 votes | Poll has closed

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Read More: clueless, direction, article, bradley, bad writer

Comments

In advance

I am sorry for all of the spelling errors. My bad.

by norcalfan on Aug 5, 2007 10:48 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

one problem

"6. I would take Kendall over Bradley in a heartbeat this year....he played."

sure kendall actually played and bradley didn't, but kendall hurt the team when he played!

A's v Giants "is kind of like the difference between going to see the Ramones and going to see the Bee Gees. A's fans will go see the Ramones." -BB 07/27/05

by xbhaskarx on Aug 6, 2007 12:35 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Point taken but....

It sounds like Bradley was hurting the team while NOT playing with his clubhouse attitude.

by norcalfan on Aug 6, 2007 7:37 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

A sidenote.

Turns out the comment to Kielty wasn't in jest. At least we know for sure now, rather than relying on our own assumptions and speculation:

In the Chronicle story, Bradley offered one anecdote of Beane telling then-injured outfielder Bobby Kielty he was "stealing money" while on the disabled list.
Kielty, who was released last week, said Sunday he didn't wish to comment on an organization he's no longer a part of. But he did verify that the "stealing money" story was true.
"It's something that happened," Kielty said. "It wasn't a good thing to hear. I've cleared things up (with Beane), and I moved on."

This is a good example of someone taking what could have been a bad situation and being a mature grown-up about it, something Bradley could still probably stand to learn a thing or four about.

Link to full story.

Bottom of the 9th - Baseball photojournalism by James Venes

by Flashfire on Aug 6, 2007 7:20 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

so bradley is not mature

because of these comments...stuff which should come as no surprise.. that BB is an ego-maniac running the team?
or is he not mature because he didn't like how one of his teammates was addressed?

just becuase you eat a bowl of wheaties and wear champions sweats: it doesn't make you a winner

by Erik being Erik on Aug 6, 2007 7:27 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

No, Bradley is not mature because...

...this is old hat for him.

Everyone else is to blame, it's clearly a race thing, he can't handle Beane acting like he's the smartest guy in the world but Bradley himself has no problems claiming he was the best ballplayer on the A's and now the Padres, etc.

As I've said in another diary or two, Beane's hands are not clean in this, but from where I sit Bradley's are much more soiled because of his existing track record and short stays with multiple teams.

It's time for him to look in the mirror. Most of us thought he did by the time the end of the 2006 season was upon us. Clearly, he's back to the same old routine.

Bottom of the 9th - Baseball photojournalism by James Venes

by Flashfire on Aug 6, 2007 7:40 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

maybe Beane's "routine" ...

shouldn't go unchecked any further.

just becuase you eat a bowl of wheaties and wear champions sweats: it doesn't make you a winner

by Erik being Erik on Aug 6, 2007 1:21 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Get back to me when Milton Bradley isn't...

...the main source of any complaints.

Bottom of the 9th - Baseball photojournalism by James Venes

by Flashfire on Aug 6, 2007 2:21 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

can we agree that

there are complaints in the A's current clubhouse?

just becuase you eat a bowl of wheaties and wear champions sweats: it doesn't make you a winner

by Erik being Erik on Aug 6, 2007 2:36 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Never said otherwise, but anything Bradley says..

..is now taken with a huge grain of salt for me.

Bottom of the 9th - Baseball photojournalism by James Venes

by Flashfire on Aug 6, 2007 2:50 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

BB is an ego maniac

with a head the size of Barry Bonds'.

by Just Me on Aug 6, 2007 8:56 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Context mentioned in other thread -

Who knows what the context was. Obviously it was not in jest, but maybe it was in the middle of a rant following a loss in an attempt to motivate. Maybe Kielty was spouting off or someone else was and Beane was tired of it. If Geren is too soft to chew some ass, maybe Beane was filling that role.

Every story has two and sometimes three sides to it. Until you hear from all involved you can only speculate to what actually happened or why...and you're probably wrong.

I say who cares. Bradley is pissed and is spouting off with his point of view. There is no way he sees the whole picture so I'm not worried about it. I just hope others in the locker room don't listen to it.

"Do you ever get down on your knees and thank God you know me and have access to my dementia?" - George Costanza

by Captain on Aug 6, 2007 7:56 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I care about team unity

and I assume Billy Beane does too. I'm not saying there may have been something mitigating in the context of the comments, but just like Bradley, BB needs to know when his comments are going to be appreciated and when they are just going to create negativity.

by Brian in 317 on Aug 6, 2007 8:33 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Beane may have made it in jest

but if my boss said that to me, I would watch my back. It's an asymmetrical situation, and a boss's jokes don't feel so funny after you see other players rot on the bench.

by MobiusKlein on Aug 6, 2007 11:42 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Bradley's comments hurt only Bradley

I liked Bradley while he was in Oakland but like many difficult people, he doesn't realize he's difficult. What Bradley's outburst in the press did is to tell the other general managers in baseball is that you won't have to worry about Bradley blasting you in the press if you don't employ Bradley in the first place. Telling his former A's teammates that he's much better than all of them hardly endures him to anyone.

What the outburst against Beane made clear is the risk to signing Bradley now for baseball executives is not just his track record of injuries but that you will be attacked verbally in public if something doesn't work out well. Not many employers want to take on both of these risks.

Beane is smart not to respond. Bradley didn't hurt Beane. Bradley hurt Bradley.

by SA on Aug 6, 2007 9:10 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I still like Bradley..

he was the best player on the roster. Period. No argument from anyone on AN. The fact he says it makes him bad? (just like Rickey being the greatest ever)... I don't buy that.

What Bradley's comments say to me is that there is a problem in the A's clubhouse. STILL!!! he's gone but I guarantee people are not happy how things are going.

So let's not blame MB because he's able to talk about it on the record...if he did this while still playing with the A's, then that would make it seem disruptful to his team, but there are current A's who agree with MB but don't want to discuss on the record due to possible consequences.

I'm sure some players are happy that he put it out there, and maybe the A's will look at themselves in the mirror and decide what they need to do to make the squad better... from the front office to the dugout.

just becuase you eat a bowl of wheaties and wear champions sweats: it doesn't make you a winner

by Erik being Erik on Aug 6, 2007 1:19 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Its really hard to understand what you're saying

But if it is that "Bradley was the best player on the roster and no one on AN ever argues that" then its incredibly stupid and a wrong statement.

by Dusty Baker on Aug 6, 2007 1:54 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Sorry, but no.

Your best player can't be missing more than half the games your team plays.

Bottom of the 9th - Baseball photojournalism by James Venes

by Flashfire on Aug 6, 2007 2:22 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

ok...

i don't think anyone else on the roster is/was more talented. stupid of me to say it like I did.
but who else would it be? Chavy? Swisher? Crosby?
and it's possible to have the best player on the team missing games....

just becuase you eat a bowl of wheaties and wear champions sweats: it doesn't make you a winner

by Erik being Erik on Aug 6, 2007 2:39 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Bradley may have been the most talented, sure.

But in my book, you can't miss as many games as he did and be the best player on the team any more. At some point, that becomes moot. Gotta play the games to be considered the best.

Bottom of the 9th - Baseball photojournalism by James Venes

by Flashfire on Aug 6, 2007 2:55 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

fair enough...

if you care to, I'd like your opinion as to who was the best....interesting question since so many people were on the DL...but my guess is you'll choose Ellis.

just becuase you eat a bowl of wheaties and wear champions sweats: it doesn't make you a winner

by Erik being Erik on Aug 6, 2007 3:00 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Talent

I'll take Swishers and Chavez a bit over Bradley, at least a tie. And yea, thats considering Chavez's numbers the past two years. Buck might even be close too. Bradley for some reason had an aura that people thought he was a 5 tool player, almost overrated in the hype department. Even when he had a full season it was All-Star caliber (like Chavez has many times and Swisher will do) but not MVP type numbers or anything crazy. I still like him as a player but have lost alot of respect and any doubts that he had an unfair rep from previous clubs.

Either way, Bradley is talented and CAN be a great asset. Too bad he turned out to be a liability, just like every team he has been on thus far.

Gas to Chicago- $23.87 A's/White Sox Tix- $28 Watching the A's whipping the Sox in July 05'- Priceless

by WiscoFan on Aug 6, 2007 3:31 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Of who's on the team now, I'm inclined to say...

...Swisher or Buck. Defensively Chavez has no equal, but he has to improve at the plate.

I've already seen some great things out of Swisher and Buck, and they both need to keep progressing.

That's offensively, which is what Bradley is really talking about when he calls himself the best player on the team.

Overall, I go with Haren.

Bottom of the 9th - Baseball photojournalism by James Venes

by Flashfire on Aug 6, 2007 7:55 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

No but it (talking on the record)

...makes him stupid unless he trying to further reduce his market value in free agency.

by NoeValley on Aug 6, 2007 2:30 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Bradley can say whatever he wants

and we're all free to ignore it, accept it, or consider parts of it worth some thought (I'm leaning towards thinking that Beane is a bit of a dick). But what pisses me off about Bradley is how he sneaks other players into his rants - "Beaned said this to Kielty", "Shannon whispered things in my ear". He should keep other guys out of it and let then decide if they want to be part of his stuff.

by boilerdan on Aug 6, 2007 2:09 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

it's interesting to note...

During the past years of winning baseball, accounts of beane have included:

not signing good free agents (giambi, tejada, etc.)
subjecting players to humbling demotions (frank m. anyone?)
discarding bad players (rhodes as a prime example)
throwing chairs (moneyball)
criticizing / addressing players directly (jose guillen and "McGwire" reference)
Changing managers for no apparent reason (Howe / Macha)

All this sound familiar this year? Yet interestingly enough, not one iota of bs from the media / folks before....why? They won....winning does a lot to overlook the obvious, yet with all these "discretions", the A's still won. Now that they aren't, it's really funny who are the true fans and the bandwagon jumpers. Remember that old motto so prevalent before, "In Beane We Trust". The A's are just a microcosm of what happens everyday in people's regular lives at work (politics, firings, management changes, etc.). Remember folks, it's still baseball and a job for these semi to multi-millionaire players and i would not ask for less if i were their boss with those kind of salaries.

"how do you strain your oblique while staring at strike 3?" by slyrus

by ST on Aug 6, 2007 2:57 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Half a Bradley is worth two Kotsays . . .

Yeah, it's true. Bradley doesn't play a lot. Regardless, his influence appeared to be so positive in 2006 that the A's were better even when MB was merely on the bench than when, for instance, Kotsay was in center field. And when he did play, oh my !! He almost single-handedly got them into the World Series, despite Kotsay, the defensive horror of Chavez, and the ACLS tightness of the rest of his teammates (who, including the real Bad Barry and Thomas, the Big Pain) later lamely blamed their ineptness on Ken Macha) . . .

by froggiethegremlin on Aug 6, 2007 10:06 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

So Bradley played the best for 7-8 games

Hooray, he must be the savior then!

Also no single player can get a team into the WS that is an incredibly naive statement. A team consists of hitters and pitchers whose final product ends in a decision. If any one player could "single-handedly" get a team a win he'd have to be an NL pitcher who pitched a SHO and also hit a HR.

by Dusty Baker on Aug 7, 2007 1:16 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Nonsense

Bradley is incredibly overrated. He had a great six weeks at the end of 2006, but we're talking about a career .273 hitter who has managed to play more than 101 games just ONCE in 8 seasons. Bradley's good defensively, but nothing special, and certainly not as good as Kotsay (not even the post-back surgery Kotsay).

Six great weeks cannot compensate for (or obscure) the rest of his career, which is the real indicator of Bradley's worth as a player. When Beane said Bradley's not an everyday player anymore, he was 100% right. By now it's clear that he's just a good (sometimes very good) part-time player who will breakdown sooner rather than later.

Bradley started sulking when the A's refused to give him a contract extension last off-season, and he has repeatedly shown that he'll go into high-maintenance cry-baby mode when things don't go his way (see: Indians, Dodgers). The A's were smart to cut him loose when he pulled this BS again, and lucky to get six great weeks out of him last year and a decent relief pitcher in trade.

by andyinfremont on Aug 7, 2007 1:33 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I agree

The numbers don't lie. I can't understand why Bradley's fans view him as the 2nd coming of Mickey Mantle also an often injured switch hitter. However, that's where the similiarity ends.

by NoeValley on Aug 7, 2007 8:18 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs