Here We Go Again, Excuses Excuses

Is everyone looking for their Lenny Harris to boo everyday? May I present Alex S. Gonzalez and point to his most recent interview on Cubs.com.

Apparently Alex Gonzalez's poor .228 batting average can be linked directly to an injury he had on May 22nd when diving for a ball. I want to use an Uncouth Sloth quote so bad, "I smell Bull****!" Yeah that explains why he hit .202 in the month of May. Or over the last 3 years he has an average of .210 in the month of May. Must be those mysterious shoulder injuries happening every May 22nd to explain that 3 year trend. Excuses, Excuses.

The shoulder injury didn't bother him in the field but made it tough to swing a bat. He hurt his finger diving back into second base, which made it nearly impossible to grab the bat.

Lets see a ball has a bigger area to wrap your hand around than a bat handle has. Yet he fielded balls perfectly. Ohhh wait what's next that boo boo was your excuse for not fielding that ball in the playoffs? Right gotcha. Excuses, Excuses.

The Cubs would appear to benefit with Gonzalez, 30, batting second based on last year's numbers. He hit .256 (80-for-312) in the No. 2 spot with 60 strikeouts, and batted .146 (24-for-164) in the No. 7 spot with 45 Ks.

What? We would benefit because he can hit .250? Since when is that a benefit? If he cant hit in the #2 or the #7 spot why does he still have a job is my question.

"I enjoy hitting second. I love it," said Gonzalez, thinking more about scoring runs than driving them in. "You really score a lot of runs hitting in the second spot. You're in the action. Whether you walk or get on base, you'll have a chance to score. It's a fun part of the game."

Hee Hee ofcourse its fun. For you maybe. Not for us fans. You don't walk or get on base nearly enough to even sniff the #2 spot. Since when is it fun to watch a below .300 OBP player bat #2? Notice how he doesn't mention one thing about what that spot means to helping the team? Just what it feels like to him, adding some cool stats to his numbers. Blah blah blah.

Gonzalez began his transformation at the end of last season.

"I made a few adjustments in the batters box, trying to get different angles on the pitches," he said. "I did it in the last month of the season and it really helped me out. Hopefully that will keep helping me. I strengthened my arm during the off-season. I spent three hours every day in the rehab clinic. I put my work in there and my shoulder feels real strong and that should help me there."

Ahh yes that explains his .238 September batting average. Way to work out those kinks and show progress. Maybe this April you can have your 1st month with a batting average above .240 since last April.

There are some Baker quotes and more talk of Alex Gonzalez in the #2 slot. But all I see coming out of Gonzalez mouth are excuses. Nothing is ever his fault. He wants the #2 spot, not because he will be more helpful to the team, but because its cool and he gets some stats. Never mind the fact he is probably the least helpful person in the #2 spot, and hurts the team twice as bad by batting from that spot.

Read the whole thing. The "blameless" one never ceases to amaze me with his never accept responsibility ways.