I think ed wade should be fired over this as well, and while you are at it fire cooper. Bring back gerry.
From Richard Justice's blog: [rquoter] This wasn't Ed Wade's finest hour, either. To ask for a meeting is one thing. To resort to yelling and cursing reflects a lack of maturity on his part as well. Some who've known him through the years have thought he had a large streak of insecurity and a little man's complex. [/rquoter]
We weakened the team by losing a starter with an ERA of 5 for the season, 9+ for the past month, and who's last 4 starts we've lost? We basically released as scrub player and brought in a new scrub player. Big deal.
I'm with you...at this point, unless I'm mistaken...we're taking all of these facts based on the words of Shawn Chacon. I would suggest that might not be wholly accurate. That what might have been perceived as "screaming and yelling" by Chacon might have been perceived as far less by onlookers. I'd be interested to know their takes on it. All I'm suggesting is that Chacon is his own worst enemy. He's to blame for the mess he's in now. No one else.
First you cite Richard Justice, the king of trying to stir stuff up. Then the cite you cited doesn't have any citings.
If we are going to go there, Richard Justice is definitely a more credible and sober source than mlwoo defending his 'family friend'. For all the crap Justice produces, he as never inflicted the world with a column extolling the virtues of some made up word. And Justice isn't the only person to make this statement. Google Wade and with a small bit of digging you can find similar things from other sources from his time in Philly.
What Wade should have said to Chacon after Chacon refused a meeting is "you are not needed here...you can go home; your suspended for insubordination". Then, just suspended him. Why even try with a player with that attitude? I think the coach and GM were trying to actually work out the differences with Chacon but he is such a 3rd grade turd who thinks he should always have a lollipop in his mouth...that he wouldn't even do that. Imagine refusing to sit down with your boss and his boss. That is just r****ded. Why this guy thinks he is entitled to special treatment is beyond me? He got his chance to start...and his performance dictated his removal. A real competitor would try to prove on the field that they made a mistake moving him to the bullpen by trying to perform really well to warrant being back in the starting rotation...not acting like a whiney 3rd grader because he didn't get his way. Of course, he wants to blame everyone else and claim he has some special guarantee that he should always start. That's hogwash. He even said he came here for the opportunity to start. Well...he got that opportunity and might have pitched well early...but stunk up the place more recently. If he was so convinced that he should always start, then maybe he should have made that part of his contract, i.e. you always start me or let me out of here type of deal...pretty much unheard of (unless your a lil'l b**** like he is). I want to see which lucky team ends up gambling again on this turd sandwich...assuming he isn't banned from baseball next season. I doubt he pitches again this season.
Honestly, when is Cooper going to be held accountable for any of this? If he had any control of the clubhouse, he should have never had to get Ed Wade involved. I mean, if Wade wasn't strong about it, and he didn't get into Chacon's face, who would have? Tal Smith? Drayton McClane? It bothers me to think that Cecil Cooper doesn't have enough gumption to take care of the matter himself. Would Lou Piniella, Tony LaRussa, Ozzie Guillen, etc. ever have to deal with this kind of insubordination? No, because they demand and command respect from their players. And if they ever DID deal with a player like this, they would have him taken down a peg or two before the altercation ever turned physical.
I agree, this reflects badly on Cooper as well. Also you can say what you want about Bags and Biggio being to even keel and never showing emotion but nothing like this happened when they were here. Players respected them and followed their professional example.
I've seen this article posted at a couple message boards. I don't know if it supports the little man complex thing, but he certainly sounds like a hot-head. <a href="http://sonsofsamhorn.net/lofiversion/index.php/t1199.html">link</a>
I don't know how many times it needs to be said, but cleaning house is not an option with Drayton McLane. The order is to patch holes and do the best you can to potentially get lucky and make a wild card run the ensuing season. I agree that would've been the option, but Wade can't do that. As for the post suggesting Hunsicker would've gotten a minor league prospect, that's absurd. Chacon was a pitcher who no one wanted in the offseason, even at the bargain basement price of $2 million for one season. His ERA for the season is over 5, even worse of late. Prospects are much tougher and harder to trade for now than a decade ago. And somehow, you think he would've pulled something of value for Shawn Chacon?!? Give me a break. It's amazing how many of you are willing to crucify Wade and/or Cooper based solely of the words of Chacon. As bobrek already showed, there was no such promise. Not even close. You know one side of the story.
I'm going to reserve judgment until both sides are heard. Until we know what really happened, how can any of you judge Wade or Chacon...except that Chacon should have never put his hands on Wade. For that alone, regardless of the circumstances leading up to it, Chacon should be done with the Astros.
Ed Wade: Dumb. You don't antagonize a pissed off possibly roided player who knows his career is over. Now you will be known as the GM that Shawn Chacon beat down until Reggie freaking Abercrombie pulled him off...that is until Drayton fires you. Cecil Cooper: Genius. Stay in your office and send Wade to get Chacon, brilliant! Shawn Chacon: Hilarious. Your career is over so you went out blazing like a child. You took out the fans frustrations on the GM and gave the Chronicle a play by play account. Best of luck to you.
This is not true. It was widely reported at the time, and mentioned in several of the articles about the most recent incident, that he turned down larger deals from Pittsburg and someone else because they wanted to sign him to be a reliever and Houston was interested in him as a starter.
I tried to find the incident where Roger Clemens got into a fight with some management guy who decided to chew him out at the salad bar of the local supermarket but came up empty. Does someone remember the details of that? I remember it because I was having some chronic pain/anger issues myself at the time. But my point is professional issues need to be dealt with in a professional way, memos, agents, HR staff security staff. When anybody gets up in any body's face spitting and cussing, that's personal and it's on. What kind of response was Wade thinking he would get from his actions? Did he think he could browbeat Chacon and he would retreat back to the office like a recalcitrant schoolboy? Wasn't it Wade who lost control first?
