BJ Upton Busted AGAIN for Not Hustling

I hear you, JT! I just don't get it. He's not a bad kid, not a lazy kid, just really struggling with this hustle deal. How can someone who has played all their life at a relatively high level not run out a double??? After having been benched the other night for not running out a play at first?? Maddon is beside himself. I am beside myself! I'm a Rays fan and they need him to complete this season successfully.

Same guy that cried and whined the whole time he was in Durham in Triple A about not being in the majors yet. He was booed on a routine basis at the park in the minors for trotting everything out to first and never hustling.

What good is speed if your not going to use it? If your going to trot everything out what good does speed do you? He just doesnt get it and I dont think he ever will. I remember watching him in between innings when he played infield. The 1B would roll him a grounder and he would just lob everything back to first. Most of the time he would wave off the 1B because he was didnt want to throw the ball back.

Personally I would get rid of him while he has some value. Because I do not believe he will have much value for long. Can he play? Bigtime. Is he a spoiled brat that doesnt respect the game? Absolutely!

Great game however...Aybar vs. Aybar, Sonnestine pitching???playing w/o Longoria and Crawford...Go Rays-Hang in there.

Very good game...and I've become a Rays fan over the past 3-4 years watching them on MLB Extra Innings...and with the year they're having...I hope Upton gets his act together.

I enjoy watching the Rays as well. I just wish they would get rid of Upton. He is not going to get his act together because he is who he is.

The Rays really need Upton, yet I know that Maddon will bench him again for apathy. And he needs to. Cliff Floyd even told him that everyone else hustles and busts their butt and asked him why he thought he didn't have to.I am glad that Maddon stands up to him because he needs to "get it" real soon or they need to start looking for a new outfielder. I love watching the Rays this year and although I may be accused of being a band wagon jumper, I was at their innaugual game and many more when they had no support. They have alot of quality players now that are fun to watch and can be very successful!!!

HUSTLE is one reason I am a big Carl Crawford fan...watching him beat out routine ground balls to 2B early in his career made me a big fan...and I have had him most of his career on my fantasy teams. It has been fun watching this team come around.

Was at dinner with older son and his buddy telling them about when Fisk was barking at Neon Deion during Sanders rookie year about not running out a flyball. Deion eventually got it, glad he did.

Son went a looked it up on the internet but couldn't find any youtube of the incident, but did find some print stories.

Not the first guy with a million dollar arm/bat and a 10 cent head.

If I'm not mistaken, I believe Upton has been yanked twice in the past week for not hustling. What a disgrace!

Certainly would back Maddon in disciplining him more and more harshly until it gets through his apparently thick skull.

But Coach May, was it Upton who whined at Durham? I'm thinking it was Delmon Young (whom they ultimately traded for Matt Garza), who earned ever lasting infamy by also hurling a bat at a plate umpire after being rung up on a called third strike.

If they were BOTH crying then, the Durham manager deserved a big bonus that year.

quote:

Originally posted by Midlo Dad:
ut Coach May, was it Upton who whined at Durham? I'm thinking it was Delmon Young (whom they ultimately traded for Matt Garza), who earned ever lasting infamy by also hurling a bat at a plate umpire after being rung up on a called third strike.

Funny thing is, if memory serves me correctly, B J Upton was one of the players who took Delmon to the side and gave him some tips on how to act maturely.

Little brother may be developing a bit of a swagger as well, especially with rehab in AAA. Sad to see players with so much talent developing notoriaty for other than their play on the field.

quote:

Originally posted by Infield08:
What a disgrace!

Totally agree!

As a fan, give me a player with a little less talent, but that plays with heart, hustle, and dedication... I'll take them over this type of arrogant behavior anytime.

"Hey I'm a bad man so I'll have a chat with BJ about hustling"- Manny

quote:

Originally posted by Midlo Dad:
Certainly would back Maddon in disciplining him more and more harshly until it gets through his apparently thick skull.

But Coach May, was it Upton who whined at Durham? I'm thinking it was Delmon Young (whom they ultimately traded for Matt Garza), who earned ever lasting infamy by also hurling a bat at a plate umpire after being rung up on a called third strike.

If they were BOTH crying then, the Durham manager deserved a big bonus that year.

I remember both whining at various points. I believe that manager also had Elijah Dukes in the same clubhouse, so yeah he deserved a bonus.

The manager did not get a bonus...he got replaced, I believe.

quote:

Originally posted by Coach May:


What good is speed if your not going to use it? If your going to trot everything out what good does speed do you?

Personally I would get rid of him while he has some value. Because I do not believe he will have much value for long. Can he play? Bigtime. Is he a spoiled brat that doesnt respect the game? Absolutely!

Take Robinson Cano while your at it. He's another lazy player that needs a wake up call.

Dukes Young and Upton were all on that team in Durham. It was simply a joke. It was constant turmoil with those three. They constantly complained about being in the minors and made it clear that they all three did not want to be there. I remember going to games and hearing the fans boo them constantly because of their lackluster play and there intentional lack of hustle.

Upton is not going to change. He is a guy that got paid before he ever proved a thing at the ML level. He believes the game owes him. All you have to do is watch him play. He is all about himself and he is a spoiled brat. The guy jogs to second on ball off the wall and gets tagged out by the 1B trailing the play? But wait , the guy can run a 6.3 60!!! Too bad he doesnt care to use it.

Cliff Floyd called him out publicly in a pretty lengthy interview last night...
...nice to see the vets step up like that.
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080819&conten...b&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

I can understand why people might get mad about these things. I also dislike it!

But,

BJ is a good kid with amazing talent and he comes from a great family and I like him!

He didn't get to the Big Leagues because of whining. He's there because that is where he belongs!

I don't think we would say these things about kids if they or their parents were active on this board.

He is among the league leaders in SBs and a main reason why the Rays are leading the league at this time. They really need him right now with a few star players on the DL.

That said, I hope he does figure this out real quick, because these things are unacceptable no matter how good a player is... Even ManRam!

I'm not sticking up for his actions, but he is a good kid. He just needs to understand that everything he does now will be scrutinized by everyone who follows baseball. He's made some unbelievable (Top 10 Highlights) plays this year that took extreme effort. He's not a dog on the field, maybe he's just having a brain cramp!

If all he did was care about himself, this is not the way to show it! He didn't do himself any favors by doing this!

PG, you're a good man and I admire the fact that you always stick up for the players when they are named.

I would be willing to bet pretty much every talented young ballplayer, and their families, have been very polite and friendly to you. You're...um...Perfect Game.

I don't know the young men currently being discussed, but I have known a few of the others you've regarded as 'fine young men from good families'.

As I'm willing to bet you have high standards, you may want to consider that, on occasion, you have been jived.

You make some very good points as usual. And you are right I would not be making these comments about him if he or his parents read this stuff. I read my posts and I did come across very strongly.

I do not know him like you. I am sure he is a good kid. He is extremely talented that is a fact. There is just something about not hustling that lights a fire in me that causes me to have outbursts of negative emotions. Better put it just P's me OFF!

After reading my posts I can see where I could have said what I meant in a much better way. Thanks for posting what you posted PG. It made me think and thats a good thing because my wife says I could do a lot more of that!

Orlando,

Thanks a lot for saying that, but I am a nobody and people are not always very polite to me or us. In fact, we have run across some very rude people who hate us. That truly bothers me!

One thing I will brag about though... I think it's easy to figure out when someone is jiving me and when someone is genuine.

There's absolutely no reason for Manny (BJ and Justin's dad) to ever call me because we can no longer do a thing for his sons. But, he does call often and sometimes he is just trying to help a young player from his area. He has no agenda, he just cares. I like him, too, even though we have heard others make negative remarks. His wife is also a great person and very low key. BJ and Justin have great parents and they are great kids. Yes, they are also very wealthy kids and yes they should hustle 100% of the time, not 99% of the time. I'm positive that Manny would agree.

Coach May,

You and I think exactly alike. I appreciate the kid who plays hard and always gives 100%. I hate it when someone gives less than 100%.

When it comes to baseball you are a great thinker and right almost all the time. It's just in this case, I think we have a young kid who still has some things to learn. I think he will learn these things because besides being extremely talented he is a good person.

The Upton brothers have been badmouthed many times by jealous people before they were even drafted. Even right here on this site! I know that is not the case with you, but I just wanted to say something because it appeared like this thread was sounding a bit hateful. We all know that you are one of the good guys and you also have a talented son. Every player is someones son!

Everyone is also always welcome to their opinion. And those in the limelight should be prepared for public opinion as well as getting blasted by the media.

On a different topic... How about that guy in the Olympics dogging it the last 10 yards as he ran the fastest 100 meters in history.

quote:

PGStaff posted: I think we have a young kid who still has some things to learn. I think he will learn these things because besides being extremely talented he is a good person.

I empathize with with your concern and caring. A lack of effort on the field, any field, make me cringe. When it occurs on TV at the big league level it makes people crazy and react to the lack of respect for the game they see. If he was a 35th rounder with 50 big league at-bats, he would have been released already.

Some folks, including myself, are slow learners and it certainly doesn't make us bad people.

Maybe he will learn, maybe not. Who knows. It can spiral down hill to the point when your teammates vote you off the island like Manny, a future HOF player.

5 tools is a terrible thing to waste. I hope he gets it figured out soon. He is now under the hustle microscope and will be for a while. We will see what happens.

ESPN announcers just mentioned that Upton has been benched THREE times in the last two weeks for not hustling.

It doesn't matter if he is a good kid, bad kid, five tool player or pitcher. The lack of respect for the game, teammates and your manager, not to mention the fans who pay your salary is just inexcusable. He is lucky they don't have California's three strike policy.

leave the guy alone it's no like he done anything else bad. like the game yesterday when the ump thought he was trying to make a move to 2nd and called him out. his manager wnet out there and took up for him. Which made the players realize a lot. i personally like the bj and justin upton duo. The guys talented he plays the game like a pro if he didnt wanna play he would've told his manager like when manny's manager asked him if wanted to go back out. AND HE SAID NO. You can't compare the two At All. I love his demeanor. I Mean What Else Can You Ask For!

That's Upton on his way to first after a single.

quote:

Originally posted by Baseball+Work=Dreams:
I Mean What Else Can You Ask For!

Hustle, respect, hard work, try your best at all times, be a good teammate. That's just me though.

BW=D I am sure you are a good kid and well liked by your teammates but if you hit a ball off the wall and jogged to second and got thrown out by the trail fielder what would your coach say / do? What would your teammates do?

Would they be justified in doing so?

coach2790

i probably wouldn't care(take it though) i'll probably be like man that was dumb of me for not hustling nowing that i always do. sit on the bench think. shake it off go take the field(make it not effect my fielding) next at bat homerun single triple rbi double(either of those.hustle) say to myself thats how i should've done it last time. manager see's that it was only a phase last at bat. Look foward into tommorows game. again i don't know what else to say i love the game and i would know if a player just slacks off just to be doing it.

coach2790:what would your teamates do?

personally they would probably say man what were you thinking ou thre( o how i love them guys . it's ok though don't let it effect yah gameplay. Get out there and play Baseball. Lets Go Baby.
Exactly What they would say.

Not if you played for me. You would be sitting on the bench the rest of that game and getting in a lot of extra running the next day at practice. And if you were lucky enough to ever get back in the line up I am sure it would never happen again. But if it did you would be watching the rest of the games that year from the stands.

Several years ago we were playing for the conference championship. It was the bottom of the 7th game tied 1-1. We had a runner on 3rd with 2 outs. Our batter an all state player with college offers on the table was at the plate. He k's on a pitch in the dirt and just stands there then slams his bat in the dirt. The ball had squirted away from the catcher and everyone is yelling run! He then starts jogging to first then sees the throw is off line to first and tips off the 1B's glove. He then starts to sprint and the 1B is now hustling to retrieve the ball. Its a foot race to the bag and our guy is out by a step as the runner from third has already crossed homeplate. If he had busted out of the box it would not have been close and the winning run would have scored game over. Instead we go into extra innings and lose 2-1 in 9.

He sat the rest of that game. He has never lived it down. He still talks about it and still regrets it. His actions cost the team not just him. If you hustle all the time and you do it not because someone tells you to or because you dont want to get in trouble then you never have to worry about anything like this happening to you or your team.

There is just no excuse for not hustling. Its not cool to try and be cool on the baseball field. Hustle is something no one should ever have to tell a ball player to do.

There are too many guys that play the game the right way to have to worry about the ones that dont. I would rather lose with guys that do it the right way than win with ones that dont. If I am going to lose I can live with it as long as guys are giving everything they have.

You assume you will get a second chance if you get busted for not hustling. There have been a lot of players that never got another chance. Someone took that spot because they did and never gave it back up.

i agree with hustling 100% going off the field from coming on.

quote:

Originally posted by CPLZ:

quote:

Originally posted by Baseball+Work=Dreams:
I Mean What Else Can You Ask For!

Hustle, respect, hard work, try your best at all times, be a good teammate. That's just me though.

CPLZ - I don't always agree with your thoughts, but in this case !!!!

Baseball is a sport where the ingredients you mention help to make the game.

Coach May - I agree with your coaching techniques completely! Either a kid plays hard or someone else will.

Coach May beat me to it - if you played for me you would be done that game, get an ear full (and yes you would sit there and take it) and just not be a very happy camper. I would make sure you cared afterwards or you would realize being on the team wasn't in your best interests.

I had a catcher one year who was my absolute best player but he had an attitude. He kept begging me to let him go to Florida during spring break instead of playing ball. I told him he could do whatever he wanted to do but when he came back from Flordia he would never step foot on the field again. He played but started showing up late for things about two weeks before the end of the season. I suspended him for two games and told him he better not do it again.

We started district tournament (postseason) on a Monday and we had practice on Sunday. I told them we would practice at the field or gym if rain. It rained and he came strolling in about five minutes late. I told him to hit the road. He tried to tell me that he was waiting at the field and didn't know we were at the gym. Didn't matter - he pushed it too far.

Now we aren't saying you are like this kid or like Coach May's kid but the point we are trying to make is that when you don't hustle you let many people down. There is no excuse for that no matter how nice of a guy you are.

All I can say is we need more coaches like Coach May and Coach2709. We all know that some of these players were coddled from T-ball through college. If a "fair" strong dose of discipline was used when they were younger, I don't think you would see some of the attitudes we have in today's professional sports. Of course it all starts at home IMO!!

I would like to share with you guys another story along these lines. Back in 1997 I had a player who was a heck of an athlete but a pretty raw baseball player. I was watching our JV game that day , sitting there just enjoying watching the guys play. This player hits a pop up to the 2B and hangs his head and starts jogging to first. The 2B drops the ball and then Quincy starts sprinting to 1B realizing that he had a chance to reach. The 2B picks up the ball and fires it to first base. Quincy beats the throw by a step but the umpire rings him up. Our fans are going crazy and our 3B coach turns around and says "Coach he was safe!" I say "If you go out there and argue that call your fired."

After the game I take Quincy to the field house for a little talk. I told him he was a heck of an athlete and if he worked really hard he had a chance to be a good baseball player. But I told him the one thing a baseball player always did was respect the game. I told him that hustle was about respect for the game and all those that had come before him. I told him that hustle spoke to the heart of a players character. I then told him the next time that happened he should be standing on second base when it was caught and take that as a way of showing his respect in the game and pride in doing it the right way.

Two years later we are playing a powerhouse squad in the first round of the state playoffs. Quincy was a sr and had already signed with a D1 program. The game was 0-0 in the top of the 5th inning and Quincy was up with no outs. He its a pop fly behind SS and the Cf LF and SS are all going after the baseball. When it landed he was standing on 2B. We moved him with a sac bunt and then scored him on a sac fly. We went on the win the game 1-0.

Quincy still talks about this. He went on to have a great college career and was voted his teams mvp his sr year and made 1st team all conference. But he still talks about that play. Hustle is not something a ball player can turn on or turn off. Its something that they believe in and something that is a given to them. Its about respecting the game and yourself. Its a lot bigger than some will ever understand. It means you are not about yourself. It means you are about something bigger than you.

I know the Upton boys from the times played them in their travel team days


Is it possible the MONEY has changed them?
Money can do some funny things to people--their actions here are quite different from when we played them

Last week while watching a game one of my fav players got hit (I am not sure I remember where) by a 90+ FB. He fell to the ground, in obvious pain and in two seconds was up and running to 1B (when he didn't even have to). He got up so quickly, the announcers thought he was going to charge the pitcher, but he did what he was supposed to, that was it.
Hustle is what position players are supposed to do, pitchers have their own set of rules to go by. A pitcher I know very well, gave up a HR to lose a lead because he didn't throw the pitch that he was supposed to, he too was taken to the "fieldhouse" (better known as coaches office), given a stern talking to and missed his next start. When you take the field, no matter which position, what you do or don't do affects your entire team, it's not an individual sport.

It is a team sport. That is so true, but if the worst thing a person does is not hustle on the field, he or she could still be a fine humanitarian.