BLEACHERS BREW EST. MAY 2006

Someone asked me how my blog and newspaper column came to be titled "Bleachers Brew". It's like this, it's an amalgam of sorts of two things: The bleachers area in the stadium/arena where I used to sit when I would watch baseball, football, and basketball games and Miles Davis' great jazz album Bitches Brew. That's how it got culled together. I originally planned on calling it "The View from the Big Chair" that is a nod to Tears For Fear's second album, Songs from the Big Chair. So there.

Monday, April 6, 2009

The Litany of Gary Sheffield


After four years of poor play with the Milwaukee Brewers, Gary Sheffield was traded to the San Diego Padres but not before injuring his wrist and calling team management for being racist.

Said Sheffield after was traded from the Milwaukee Brewers to the San Diego Padres:
"Playing in California is like a breath of fresh air." (He hit .316 in his first year in San Diego)

After a year and a half in San Diego, he is sent to the Florida Marlins where he would win a World Series title in 1997.
"It feels good to be back home." (Sheffield was born in Tampa although the Marlins are based in Miami and he his .316 once more in his first season there.

After the World Series victory, he was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers because Florida could not pay him an extension. Said Shef after the trade, "I am excited to be here."
While there he played well but alienated coaches and teammates alike for his constant whining in the press. After four years, he was traded to the Atlanta Braves.

Two years in Atlanta then Shef became a free agent. He wanted to move on seeing as how the Braves were no longer among the National League's elite.

After playing hard to get, he signs with the New York Yankees. Said Shef, "This is a dream. A boyhood dream. Who doesn't want to play for this storied team?"

He played well there but in his final year, he was displaced by Bobby Abreu in right field and made to play part-time at first. He became a locker room distraction and criticized teammates.

He was traded to the Detroit Tigers in 2006 where he said "I'm going to a place where they want me." Then he proceeded to lambast the Yankees.

On March 31, 2009, the Tigers released him because they wanted more versatility.

On April 3, 2009, Shef signs with the New York Mets and says, “This has been a lifetime thing for me,” he said. “With my uncle (Dwight Gooden who played for both the Mets and the Yankees) here with the Mets, it’s been a dream of mine for a long time. I never thought it would happen, but I had the chance to come here and fulfill my dream.”

Okay, let's wait for a year to see what he has to say about Omar Minaya, Fred Wilpon, and his teammates.

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