People who live in New York City love to call it “the greatest city in the world.” But most everyone who doesn’t live there considers it, at best, an interesting place to visit and, at worst, a place to see once and never return to.
Besides being crowded, dirty and polluted, it’s just jammed with incredibly rude, angry, self-absorbed people.
Anyway, New Yorkers showed their (lack of) class again Tuesday when they verbally abused Red Sox reliever Jonathan Papelbon to the point that he feared for his safety — and this was during a parade to celebrate the All-Star Game.
An editor for espn.com just happened to be driving the vehicle Papelbon and his pregnant wife were riding in … and filed a report of how awful it was.
Here is the link to the espn.com story. It reminds me of why I hate going to NewYork City, and why I’m eager to leave when I’m there.
The vile treatment apparently was a function of Papelbon having had the temerity to say he would like to be the closer for the American League, if a save opportunity arose. When, of course, that is the divine right of Yankees reliever Mariano Rivera.
Anyway, the treatment Papelbon got was completely out of line. I wonder (and doubt) that fans in any part of the country would have been as rude and abusive. Philadelphia? Maybe. Boston? Perhaps. But nowhere else.
My favorite part of this? When Papelbon reacts to an obscene gesture by holding up his ring finger — the one with the 2007 World Series ring on it.
6 responses so far ↓
1 Joseph D'Hippolito // Jul 16, 2008 at 4:42 PM
Paul, I wouldn’t waste any sympathy on Jonathan Papelbon. He’s earned all the antipathy he receives, and I speak from personal experience.
Last October, I was covering the Angels-Red Sox playoff game in Anaheim for the New Bedford Standard-Times, along with two of that paper’s sports reporters. One of my tasks was to ride a Red Sox sidebar. When I was in the clubhouse, Papelbon doused me with beer — twice — once while I was interviewing Brendan Donnelly, with some beer getting in my tape recorder.
Now, you might not find this a big thing but I was in the Angels’ clubhouse the night they won the World Series in 2002 and the Ducks’ clubhouse the night they won the Stanley Cup in 2007 — and nobody from either team did that to me. BTW, I don’t consider being splattered on the sidelines the same as having a whole can of beer poured on me, twice.
Anyway, after the second time, Papelbon stands in front of me with a maniacal, excrement-eating grin yelling, “Got him!” Then he grabs his crotch and yells, “Gotscha!” I was so incensed that I was about to grab a can of beer myself and douse him w/the contents, but the Boston media relations director grabbed my wrist and said, “No, that’s for him.” I immediately left the clubhouse w/Papelbon yelling at me. I know he would have dunked me if I had stayed — and, if he did, I would have done something that would have put me in jail.
When I came back to the press box, one of the Standard-Times reporters told me, “you look the worse for wear.” I told him what happened. All of the reporters from New England outlets were in the same area of the press box and they all expressed disgust at Papelbon. One of them even said that he was going to put Papelbon’s behavior in the lead of his story!
Besides, Paul, you should read this story about the whole mess concerning the All-Star Game:
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/2008/07/14/2008-07-14_jonathan_papelbon_says_he_should_close_a.html?page=0
Some excerpts:
“If I was managing the team, I would close,” Papelbon said. “I’m not managing the team, so it don’t matter.”
Papelbon, though, seemed to believe that Boston’s championship a year ago not only ensured Terry Francona’s place as the American League manager, but him being the closer.
“We’ve both earned that right; us, by winning the World Series and having the opportunity of having our manager there and our team being represented, and Mariano by what he’s done for this role, we’re in Yankee Stadium and blah, blah, blah,” Papelbon said. “It’s not that easy. Everybody thinks it’s a cut and dry answer, but it’s not.”
Later…
After his 50-minute media session, Papelbon backtracked on his statements, telling the Boston Globe that he had had a change of heart after answering questions on the subject for the better part of an hour.
Papelbon grabbed the Boston reporter’s tape recorder, held it to his mouth and said, “This is Jonathan Papelbon, closer of the Boston Red Sox. Mariano Rivera will be closing the 2008 All-Star Game in Yankee Stadium. I’m making a statement right now, saying I don’t want it, I want him to have it. I said all that earlier, but that’s the way I feel about it.”
Sorry but Papelbon is an arrogant, self-centered jerk. Calling him white trash is an insult to white trash.
2 George Alfano // Jul 16, 2008 at 8:05 PM
Papelbon deserves almost all of the abuse he received for disrespecting Mariano Rivera. When Papelbon has 14 years for Rivera, that maybe he can talk.
You write “Besides being crowded, dirty and polluted, it’s just jammed with incredibly rude, angry, self-absorbed people.” To paraphrase Woody Allen, you write that like it’s a negative thing.
New York fans are not bad fans – except fans of the New York Rangers. They are intense fans and intracity rivalries are even more intense. As Jeff Torborg once said, “In New York, baseball isn’t a matter of death. It’s much more important than that.”
3 Carly Paradis // Jul 20, 2008 at 4:12 AM
Though some of you may believe that he deserved the treatment he got there is not excuse for threatening the live of his pregnant wife she had nothing to do with his comments. and the people that want to support the treatment he got have no creditability because of the way they treated a friggin pregnant women.
4 depo // Jul 20, 2008 at 9:24 PM
Tremendous posts by George and Joey.
That’s what this site needs, more people giving the big ole thumbs up to abuse on pregnant women. She deserved it, right George? You stay classy.
But Joseph D’Hippolito takes the cake. Only in his head would getting doused with beer be a greater sin than berating a pregnant woman.
Joey, there are bigger things in this world than sports and, uh, you.
5 Joseph D'Hippolito // Jul 21, 2008 at 2:35 PM
depo, I was talking about the abuse directed at Papelbon, not his wife. Besides, if you read the New York Daily News piece, you would get the picture that Papelbon is absolutely clueless about the ramifications and consequences of his behavior. He’s already an embarassment to the Red Sox. One of these days, he’s going to do piss off the wrong person and pay a larger price than he surmised or will have wanted — and so will the Red Sox. He is a major disaster waiting to happen.
As far as his wife is concerned, I bet she has to put up with more than either you or I could imagine at home.
6 George Alfano // Jul 23, 2008 at 3:47 PM
Show me where I said his wife deserved any abuse.
tick…tick…tick….tick. (buzzer) couldn’t find it, could you.
Hey, what’s better to get irrational about than baseball.
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