Len & Bob's baseball blog

I went over the San Diego Union Tribune today to read the story Len mentioned and it made me feel embarrassed. No reason for Soriano to do what he did. I felt compelled to leave a comment on their site and I did. My thoughts below:

I live in Chicago and am a big Cubs fan. I am as upset as Peavy and Wells about Soriano and his homerun yesterday. There is no need for his antics. It will be interesting if they throw at him today. I wish some of these ballplayers would show some respect. Anyone of us would gladly play baseball for a living and I think some of these ballplayers take their talent for granted.

Hudson threw at Soriano last week b/c of his antics. Soriano hit 3 hr's the night before, but I think the real reason Soriano got some high heat was his attempt to leg out a double on a solid single the night before with a 9-1 lead.

Jake Peavy wants to talk about showimg someone up, he didn't a word about his teammate David Wells who did nothing but show up the umpires yesterday. Soriano wasn't showing anyoune up. HE admired a homrun he hit. I'm sure just like any other pitcher he clinches his fist when he punches out a big out. Peavy is talking about an event no one remembers. What's worst, admiring a homerun or drilling a player in the ribs(which could cause an injury) for admiring a homerun. If peavy has a problem he should be a man and talk to soriano directly, not through the newspaper.

Wow, my worst possible thoughts just came true. Hope Lee isnt hurt and we dont loose him for the sox series. Lets hope Z can control his anger when he goes back on the mound

Sure enough, there it is. I'm expecting some payback soon on our part. Unfortunately D-Lee had to be the one who got plunked. Thankfully, it wasn't the wrist. I hope Z doesn't pay redemption right away, that way we can have him for a few more innings.

I can absolutely understand the comments Peavy made. What Soriano did was beyond bush league. Pretend you are a professional, especially when it is a meaningless homerun. Ridiculous. That being said, no reason for Young to throw where he did on Lee. Never right to go up and in.

Soriano's clown show was bush and punk. We have to remember that he played in New York, where such buffoonery by the home team is not only tolerated but encouraged.
The analogy to a pitcher clenching his fist after a strike out is weak. It might apply if the pitcher engaged in extended antics, such as staring at the strikeout victim as he makes his way to the bench or waving bye-bye.
And what's with Zambrano taking off his belt? Is this the WWE?

All I can say is I have seen other players showboat a heck of a lot more then Fons did.

And how did I miss the fight, thought the game was at 1:20 today.....sigh.

No One Should Care If Soriano Jumps Around After He Hits A HR, What About Sammy Sosa When He Did His Hops, He Wasn't Trying To Show Up Anyone, And Neither Was Soriano, They're Just Mad They Lost!

First of all... it's quite CONVIENIENT for PEAVY to talk smack WHEN HE'S NOT SCHEDULED TO PITCH IN THE SERIES. And second... DAVID WELLS is the LAST GUY who should talk about CLASS. This guy has SAID and DONE some of the most STUPID things in the game. I say.. YOU HIT US... WE HIT YOU!!!!

The sad thing of this whole D. Lee incident is the fact that the Cubs will most likely be without there best hitter from anywhere from 5-10 games. What is even more frustrating is Chris Young will likely only miss one start because he didn't throw the first punch. Chris Young is a very good pitcher with exceptional control and there is no excuse for throwing a ball high and inside. I think that is also funny that this hit-by-pitch on D. Lee was in retaliation for Soriano's reaction to his homerun. In these days doesn't everyone admire their homerun? Does every home run warrant and hit-batsmen? Interestingly enough shouldn't Zambrano get beaned during his next at bat because he shook his fist after striking a guy out to end an inning? That was Bush league Chris Young, you and your organization should be ashamed to call yourselves PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL PLAYERS. You, Peavy, and Wells, bush league.

Soriano's antics beyond push and punk? Give me a break you guys. Peavy needs to stop running his mouth, hes the real punk. Don't give up a 600 foot home run and you wont need to worry about players admiring their home run. I hope someone went after Peavy in that scuffle today, maybe Gerold Perry? It's a good thing Big Z was held back cuz he wudda knocked someone the hell out! GO CUBS!

ok if soriano wants to admire his home-runs he can, i would do that to. I think Peavy's just mad b/c soriano is better n i hope derek lee comes back before cubs play against sox!
GO CUBS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

hey I don't care if soriano did look at his home run he showed emotion in a game the padres did the same thing when Hoffman won in sandiego a month ago there is still no escuse for going high and tight on our best hitter. If they were so mad why didn't they hit soriano. no, they knew what they were doing when they hit lee. as for them it is a good thing peavy isn't pitching in this series because i feel it should be a star for a star

i agree with the comment of LENNY C!!!! yup u hit them they hit u!!!I think carlos wasnt taking off his belt i saw the video and they said it started coming off when he was in the crowd not sure though.they also said they started fighting b/c young told derek to hurry to 1st base.

I agree with Mike, Soriano had the right to flaunt his hit, he deserves it!

i am a huge cubs fan...what the heck are we talking about?? players are no longer allowed to show emotion?? how far is this gonna go? was jordan jumping and pumping his fists bad sportsmanship? how about david wells talking about barry bonds and everyone else in the steroid controversy?? yea wells talking smack about people in the papers is sportsman-like, but not celebrating your accomplishments on the field!

Also did anyone else notice D-lee turning towards Pinella and getting behind him?after the punches thrown? I think that he didnt realize what was going on, until then, then he went "uh-oh, i shouldnt be doing this!" i think that he just got caught up in the moment...he is normally a very good person and i still love him as a person. Peavy and the other pitchers are just mad because they know that the padres dont have an offense...and if they dont throw a gem, then they are done.

one more thing!!!...i know this may sound like im whining but im not...but i am SO sick of MLB just looking for reasons to tick off pinella and the cubs...everyone says that the umps should have been there to make sure things didnt get out of hand....how about the home plate ump just checking to make sure D-Lee is ok??

ok, im dont finally...and i just look forward to when we are playing in the playoffs...bc we are...we are a more balanced team then anyone in our division, yes even MIL...hopefully we see the padres in the playoffs too, if they make it...bc i think ARIZONA or LA may make it out of that division...and the WC is probably coming from the east

Hello? Admiring your handiwork is part of the game. You can't tell
me for one minute that if they had hit a homerun like that they
wouldn't have stood there and admired it. The only difference is
that this time it wasn't their homerun, so let's cut the shit
already.

And as far as the threats made my Peavy, that was totally
unprofessional. The Cubs have towering homeruns hit off of us and
not one time have we threatened to break someone's ribs or retaliate
in the newspaper. He should be fined and suspended for making
threats like that. If a regular person had said something like that
in the newspaper, the police would be knocking on their door.

Now, for today's incident with Derrek. I don't know what got said
and I am not going to speculate, but I'll tell you one thing, the
Cubs are not going to take it lightly. The Cubs have been known to
be pushovers because they don't resort to comments like Peavy's or
retaliation, but WE WILL defend ourselves. Young's actions need to
have serious repricutions and Peavy was the instigator. That is not
how you play ball. They keep saying to respect the game, well where
the hell was that respect when they took a cheap shot against
Derrek?

If you have an issue with someone you take it up with that person,
you don't take it out on someone who had nothing to do with it.
Derrek is one of the most soft spoken guys on the Cubs, but when
push comes to shove you had better be ready to pay the price. Derrek
had every right to be angry. That pitch could have beaned him, and
considering how hard some of these guys throw it could have resulted
in a very serious injury.

They say nice guys finish last...well the Cubbies are no longer the
pushovers of the MLB. You wanna play rough, then you better be
prepared to get roughed up yourselves.

GO CUBS

Now, you wanna talk about MAJOR showboating...How about the called shot that Babe Ruth did. What Soriano did pales in comparison. So let's stop this whining and get back to what is really important and that's playing baseball.

Two comments: one opinion, one fact.

Opinion: Soriano's being paid an awful lot of money to help the Cubs win ball games. So far his antics after home runs have cost the team two ejections (Lilly and DLee), possibly two losses, plus a potential injury to DLee - and that's in just over a week. That's not helping the team win. When he hits a home run, he's just doing his job. No big deal. Trot around the bases and go sit down. He can celebrate with his teammates when they win the game!

Fact: The great ones (I'm talking about the really great ones) didn't celebrate home runs. They knew they'd hit another one tomorrow.

chris r. are u even a cubs fan talking trashabout soriano playing like bush leauge,your a moron this is for cub fans,and for your info every great slugger admires a blast or bomb off of a pitcher,what is wrong with you?

Peavy is just a poor sport. Jeez every player watches their homerun. Soriano hit the ball a mile; that homerun was shot. As a fan homeruns are cool to watch...Soriano hit a homerun and watched it leave the ball yard; big deal. Jake Peavy quit being a doggone cry baby...That was some party yesterday. Too bad that the Cubs came up on the losing end.

Once again, as in Bob's A Tisket, A Tasket, just because everyone is doing it doesn't make it right. Soriano was wrong period. Anyone who stands and admires his home run is wrong. Hit the ball, run the bases; that's the way this game is supposed to be played. Now, giving Soriano the benefit of the doubt, I'm sure that since he's been playing ball this type of behavior is what he's seen and he's been lead to believe that it's acceptable. It's not. Most longtime fans are embarrased and turned off by such behavior. Do your job, play the game and stop trying to grandstand.

So let me get this right, the Cubs finished last season in last place in the worst division in baseball, they haven't won a World Series in 98 YEARS and they are currently FIVE GAMES BELOW .500... and they deserve respect? From who?

And now to top it off, some of the players on the Cubs are showboating... what a joke. I don't think anyone on the Cubs has earned the right to showboat. If you're going to talk the talk, then you better be able to back it up, with winning more games than you lose, other wise you're just embarrassing yourself and your team.

The Cubs at least need get over the .500 mark and maybe even into first place before they can validate any kind of showboating!!! Until then, they just need to play baseball and WIN some games.. more than they lose.

Yeah Leo...
What ARE these "Cub Fans" yapping about??? I DON'T think ANY player should be in the batter's box for an HOUR after launching one, but SORIANO's admiring HIS homerun was NOTHING in comparison to some guys in the league.. namely MANNY RAMIREZ, SAMMY SOSA, and even KEN GRIFFEY. And do these same WHINERS notice that ARAMIS tends to ADMIRE his handiwork on occasion?????? Get this people... when the guys on YOUR team, you're with him NO MATTER WHAT. Get it?????
All I know is that this team is starting to FINALLY show some STONES, and sometimes...
just sometimes.. that's BETTER than winning ONE game.

bill any time you hit a 600ft. home run theres nothing wrong with admiring it, and besides that, what other cubs have even showboated this season you ignoramous.

It's also easy for jake peavy to sit back and be the big, bad, tough pitcher and criticize soriano cuz he aint pitching this series! and dont even get me started on David Wells, arguably the biggest scumbag in the league.

See you in the playoffs, bitches. GO CUBS!

i agree with most of you,i think we know who i dont agree with,i just dont understand some of you so-called cub fans trashing soriano for what he did,its not a big deal,everyone in everysport does some kind of showboating,its part of the game,a pitcher strikes a guy out to end the game,what does he do pumps his fist or jumps up and down,do they fight, no!a player dances in the end zone after a long touchdown or great catch,do they fight,no!IT IS THE SAME DAMN THING PEOPLE!i just cannot believe some of your comments,even aramis admires his shots sometimes,like the one he hit in the second deck at shea this year against the mets,you guys wanna trash him now too???every slugger has done this from time to time for years PERIOD,DEAL WITH IT AND MOVE ON!

"I've been doing that for six years in the league, so why do I have to change?" he said. "I'm not trying to show up anybody or offend anybody. A lot of pitchers, when they strike out somebody, they do a lot of things on the mound. So it's not only me. That's part of the game."
"alfonso soriano"

get the point yet!

To Lisa R., George A. and Leo S.-talk about unprofessional, can any of you get your point across without the foul language?

Hey George A,

You have to win more games than you lose to make the playoffs!!!

You're the ignoramous!!!

i guess not!