Johnny Damon is Complaining
My loyalty to Johnny as a person prevents me from commenting on this:Johnny Damon looked at the lineup posted on the door to the Yankees’ clubhouse Wednesday afternoon. His name wasn’t on it. Rookie Shelley Duncan’s was, in the designated hitter spot.
Damon wasn’t happy he wasn’t playing and he wasn’t happy Joe Torre didn’t give him a heads-up. He knows it’s only going to get worse when Jason Giambi comes back, maybe in a week. He said maybe the Yankees should trade him if they’re not going to play him every day now that he’s feeling healthy.
“As a player, you always want to know what your role is and what’s happening,” Damon said. “If I’m still out there on the margin, especially with Jason coming back . . . Anything’s possible. I know a lot of teams are interested. With Jason coming back and a number of outfielders going down, the Yankees could probably get a better player now than what they probably got offered July 31.”
“I wouldn’t say I would like it,” he said. “I signed here to win a World Series, but I’ve always been a guy if you’re not wanted in a place 100 percent, why stop the team from making something work?”
Does Damon not feel 100 percent wanted here?
“I’m not sure,” he said. “I don’t know. You’d have to go ask some other guys, but I feel like what I can do on the field is something that can help the team win . . . Obviously, I feel like I’m producing and I’m doing my job out there. They see something different.
” … The first time you get traded, it’s a big deal, but after you’re on a lot of teams, you know it’s part of the game. You always want the guys you’re with to have the best team out there.”
After speaking with Torre following batting practice, Damon toned it down. He said Torre wanted to rest him before a day game today and wanted to go with the hot hand in Duncan against lefty John Danks. The move worked as Duncan hit his fifth homer, a two-run shot.
“I’m OK. I understand the game. Unfortunately, I understand it too well.”
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Oh, okay Damien, don’t comment! I will!
Damon says: “I feel like I’m producing and I’m doing my job out there.”
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahah oh man.
Damon says: “They see something different.”
HAHAHAHAHAH. Maybe “they” see-
.251/.353
FREE SHELLEY DUNCAN.
LEAVE MELKY IN CENTER.
LEAVE ANDY PHILLIPS AT FIRST.
HAVE DAMON AND GIAMBI PINCH HIT.
A bridge collapsed during rush hour, and you’re going to debate about Johnny Damon- what kind of world do we live in?
I AM VERY SURPRISED THAT JOHNNY WOULD SPEAK OUT AGAINST JOE. JOE IS TRYING HIS BEST TO PLAY HIS HOT HAND WITH SHELLEY AND TO HAVE GREAT DEFENSE WITH THE MELK MAN IN CENTER. JOE IS LOYAL TO JOHNNY AND HAS BEEN PLAYING HIM ALL YEAR. ALL JOE DID WAS GIVE JOHNNY A DAY OFF. VERY DISAPPOINTED IN JOHNNY.
Look, the bottom line is that Damon is a fierce competitor with a lot of pride, like David Cone, and he wants to be in the lineup everyday. He took it personally. He was offended because Joe didn’t tell him beforehand that he wasn’t in the lineup. Johnny shows a lot of confidence in his abilities, and he knows that Joe Torre would have told Derek or A-Rod if they were going to be benched.
Everything is squared away now between them now, though. Johnny is locked in a big contract, and is not going anywhere.
I do not envy Joe Torre when Jason Giambi DOES come back. It will be a true balancing act to insert 4 great players who are competing for 2 spots. Joe did a great job during the first 5 years of the dynasty by juggling and mixing and matching his bench players.
Yanks should put him through waivers and trade him by August, 31. Eat his entire contract. Who needs a DH that can’t slug or an outfielder who can’t throw or run? Might as well kept 39-year old Bernie Williams.
Hey attorney-at-law, I hope you’re not billing the Yankees for such “great” advice!
Johnny has been battling injuries all year, but now he’s healthy, and hitting well. He’s had off-years, but has come back strong.
He is truly the igniter of the lineup when he leads off and gets on base. The Yanks won’t be winning any rings without his lead-off magic. He was one of the best lead-off men in the game last year.
I hope Joe has the courage to mix and match lineups during the postseason! If he sticks with Johnny and Jason instead of going with his gut against certain pitchers, the Yanks may suffer another early postseason exit.
Besides, any game where Johnny and/or Jason are on the bench means they’re available as pinch-hitters in key spots.
Also, the fact that Shelley and Andy are getting playing time should increase their value in the postseason as pinch hitters and starters.
All that being said — Damon should have talked with Torre BEFORE going to the MEDIA and Seven-upping his manager.
Looks like Joe’s losing control of the ship!
If anyone lost control, it was Damon.
watch out boy!he’s like butter-ON A ROLL-BABY!.258 and rising.even getting 2 walks helps.his job is to get on base and let arod and jeter bring him home.all the naysayers,critics and pundits dogged him for his stats,but they forgot the immeasurable stat-the heart and will of a champion!so they can take their stats and shove it in their ass!WWW000000000!!!!!!!
i dont mind the critics saying he was playing bad.that
was a fact.a spade is a spade.what i didnt like is
them constantly repeating it,saying he’s done and
finished.i think he has 2-3 good years left.resting
this offseason will rejuvenate him and he’ll be back
next year batting .290.
I signed on to be here, but I also would like to try to play every day. I know my body, early in the season, didn’t allow it, but there are a lot of things I want to accomplish in this game.
Obviously, winning a championship is first and foremost, and that’s the reason I signed here. Over the off-season, I’ll probably have to really decide what’s the best thing for the Yankees and what’s the best thing for me, because I never want to be a player that handicaps a team. If they want to go another way, I don’t want to be that guy that says, ‘Absolutely not.’
I think they can pretty much pencil Melky in as the everyday center fielder for a number of years. And there are a number of other guys.
The biggest challenge is sometimes not really knowing if you’re going to be playing. There was a day not too long ago when you showed up to the ballpark and you knew you were leading off, playing center field. Now, it’s just different, and you have to adjust to the team aspect of it.
I love being at home, in Orlando. I was raised down there, and I will always make my home down there. That’s something that will have to be looked at — obviously later. That being said, I’d like to try to make it work here.