Thursday, July 23, 2009

Good Night My Sweet Prince





Well, it was bound to happen and it did. What you may ask? The departure of 1/2 of the brothers LaRoche. Yesterday our fare GM, Neil Huntington, pulled the trigger on a trade w/ the Boston Redsox w/ Adam LaRoche being the center of the deal. The Pirate nation was none too surprised by this turn of events. With Adam set to become a free agent at the end of the season combined w/ his slumping bat and high asking price of a salary for his production, the writing was on the wall for my favorite laroche.

The elder statesmen Laroche has been hammered in the blogsphere and media each of his 2 1/2 seasons w/ the Pirates. He had such a love hate relationship w/ the fans and media here in the Burgh. We loved to hate him for his under performance at the plate, the apparent lack of hustle in the field or rounding the bases, and his overall low key attitude. Many fellow bloggers took to calling him "Lachoke." And as noted on this very blog, he has had some very low moments at the plate w/ men in scoring position. But what seems to get lost is his glove. Adam is a darling at first. His tall frame and his long arms picked ball out of the dirt and stretched out to make a caught at a badly tossed ball many times; ensuring an out was recorded at first instead of an infield hit.

Despite the general fan base despising the elder Laroche, Adam commented in interviews yesterday that he wished he could have done more. He even went on to say he hopes the Pirates really turn it around and not just continue w/ the losing madness that's become part of Pirate baseball. He acted w/ class yesterday.

It is that same class that many local reporters and beat writers are now sharing in laments w/ the the general fandom. In several articles I've read, the beat writers talk about how easy going Adam was to interview and deal w/ on a daily basis in the clubhouse. He was always willing to give of his time to the media. And what's even more impressive is how much of a positive presence he was around the clubhouse. For being knocked for his apparent lack of passion, Adam was reported many times this season w/ being the veteran presence who would lead the closed door team meetings -- basically telling the guys to get their crap together and go out there and keep tyring harder. Adam was the veteran who took offence to cocky Carlos Beltran when he complained about being swept by the Pirates, that the Mets were a better team than us losers. Adam is the one who defended the organization to the media and called Beltran out as a "classless act." Adam was the guy who encouraged the youngsters such as Brandon Moss, Delwyn Young, and his brother Andy when they were struggling. He celebrated the victories of young Andrew McCutchen's walk-off single against the Indians and he took responsibility of his own poor performance.

And if you haven't got it by now, let me share one more reason Adam was an unsung hero for the Pirates. Yesterday he was benched for a day of rest. Despite the whole baseball world knowing he was traded to Boston before he did, Adam was in uniform sitting on the bench rooting his brothers on. When he got called into Huntington's office in the 6th inning to be informed of the trade, Adam decided to go back out and support his "boys." What a gentleman and a true leader? This guy's world has just been upset. He now has to uproot his family, find a place to live in the Boston area, mingle in w/ a new team, learn that team's way of doing things, and adjust to being a bench/role player instead of an every day guy. And in his own words, "it's a weird feeling." But despite his own emotions running high, Adam sucked it up and put himself last and focused on his team, or now x-team. And when Brandon Moss hit the walk-off homer to win the game in the bottom of the 9th yesterday, Adam was right there w/ the rest of the gang waiting at home plate to celebrate the victory over the Brewers. Wow, now that's true leadership! Stink'n Prince Fielder, the first basemen for the Brewers, couldn't understand why he was still on the bench and suited up when he was traded. Well Prince, let me tell ya it's because Adam Laroche IS the team player you should model and be like. You are half the 1st basemen Adam is w/ half his range and abilities on defense.

Although most of the Pirate nation is glad to see Adam go, I, for one, and a bit saddened. I loved watching his defense. I loved watching his sweet and very graceful swing. I loved watching him play baseball w/ his brother. But mostly, I loved his non-flashiness. He is a country boy who loves his hunting and outdoors and plays the game w/ intelligence and uses his body to his advantage. I'm going to missing seeing #25 caught the ball from #15, his brother Andy. I'm going to miss that rather interesting up-right batting stance. And I'm going to miss his center of gravity! Adam, may you find success, even if it's just for 2 months, in Bean-town!

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