Was asked on ESPNews who he thought could come out of nowhere to be a star this year and he named Josh Hamilton. Said he could start in center field...
Was asked on ESPNews who he thought could come out of nowhere to be a star this year and he named Josh Hamilton. Said he could start in center field...
Amazing. Josh Hamilton doesn't even play for the Red Sox or Yankees. How'd Gammons even know he exists?
I'm just like everybody else. I have two arms, two legs and 4,000 hits."
-Pete Rose
Not to be un-kind to Mr. Gammons, and I won't, he did suffer a brain injury last fall. I think he is recovered, except a little weakness on the the left face, and I respect his opinion. I think it's a good call, welcome back Mr. Gammons, best wishes for your continued recovery and we hope you are right.
Gammons has always been very infatuated with Hamilton. He used to rave about him years ago. I remember that he wrote a bit on Hamilton several years ago saying he was "going through a Todd Marinovich type hell".
Hugs, smiling, and interactive Twitter accounts, don't mean winning baseball. Until this community understands that we are cursed to relive the madness.
Funny, in the fantasy report from the USA today they didn't even list Hamilton. They had the OF and the depth chart and he's nowhere to be found. Funny how things can happen quickly. I'm starting to think there might be something special here. He for sure had IT a few years ago and now he's motivated with IT so watch out!
I think the kid is the real deal. Patience at the plate, good power, nice speed, plays great D. I still shake my head that he can do it all after 4 years off. Now that he is getting some positive media attn. maybe more Zoner's will stop being so cautious about Hamilton. The wait and see attitude is old the kid can flat out play.
Gammons was on SC this past weekend and said that Hamilton is, BY FAR, the best story of the spring. He and most everybody in the league is rooting for this kid because, "Never once has he blamed anyone but himself. I not only think he'll stick (when the Reds break camp), but very possibly be the starting CF'er on Opening Day!"
I normally am not the biggest PG fan, as he's a terrible homer for the BoSox, but kudos to him. I know we all are pulling for JH!
The only thing that may jinx this for Hamilton now is that Peter Gammons spoke it...
"Sometimes, it's not the sexiest moves that put you over the top," Krivsky said. "It's a series of transactions that help you get there."
Gammons admits he is a life long red sox fan but he is about as unbiased as they come. He has seen enough baseball in his lifetime and gives props to the players who are deserving. As for Hamilton could this be the scrap pile find of the century?
I like Peter Gammons as well as the next baseball freak does, but since when is Peter in charge of ordinations around here? Hamilton has proven he can hit ST pitching, and that he has a ton of talent. Do we really know if he can hit major league pitching when it counts? Maybe a poor comparison in terms of raw talent, but Brandon Larson comes to my mind.
What St. Peter says may well turn out to be true (and I hope he is right), but Josh Hamilton still has a ways to go. It's early, still. He has proven to me that he belongs on the team, but let's not bat him third, put him in CF, and write the biography just yet.
I'm less concerned with his talent and ability, and more concerned with Josh's state of mind and ego, especially when the national spotlight gets turned on him full glare, as is getting ready to happen. That's when he will be most prone to slipping, when the stress gets the heaviest, and when he'll feel most alone again. He'll need his friends, his family, his wife, his teammates, and Johnny Narron to keep a close eye on him, and help him with all of this. It's not unusual for folks with addictive personalities to backslide. Someone needs to be with Josh 24/7.
If I'm Wk or JN, I go very slowly with Josh, and pay more attention to his mental state than anything else, and I think it will pay huge dividends in the long run.
Very overbearing, pushy parents. Here's a list of his legal troubles. Go to Wikipedia.com to check out the rest of his positives and negatives.
Legal troubles
Marinovich has had several run-ins with the law, most of which have been related to his ongoing drug problems. He was arrested in 1991, while still a student at USC. In 1997 he was arrested on suspicion of growing marijuana and served three months in jail after pleading guilty. In April 2000, Marinovich was arrested for sexual assault[2], followed by a 2001 arrest on suspicion of heroin possession, which forced his exit from the Avengers.
In August 2004, Marinovich was stopped for skateboarding in a prohibited area. He was arrested after he was found to be carrying an amount of methamphetamine and three syringes. He pleaded guilty to the charges and was sentenced to 90 days in jail and three years probation.
Marinovich was arrested in a public bathroom in Newport Beach, California in May 2005, after being found with apparent drug paraphernalia. He fled on a bicycle, but was caught a few blocks away. He gave his occupation as "unemployed artist" on the police report.[3] He was ordered to undergo six months of drug rehabilitation followed by six months of outpatient treatment as a result.[4]
Basically his dad controlled everything he did when he was a kid. For example, he couldn't eat cake at another kid's birthday party because it had refined sugar in it. Todd wasn't allowed to eat fast food at all because it wasn't good for him. Todd's dad, Marv, was basically trying to make Todd into an NFL QB literally from the cradle. Now who knows if Todd would have turned out the same had Marv been a normal father but one could make an argument that once Todd got a taste of freedom from his dad, he did all the things he wasn't allowed to do and went overboard. Perhaps the same could be said about Josh.
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