Bradley

[Giff]

<!--quoteo(post=68705:date=Nov 11 2009, 11:31 AM:name=Coldneck)-->QUOTE (Coldneck @ Nov 11 2009, 11:31 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->This is why Hendry is retarded:

1. Siging an injury-prone malcontent to an expensive THREE year deal. The odds of this blowing up were extremely high. If you take the risk you do it for one year, not three. Way too much risk compared to not enough potential reward.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Yes he was injury-prone, that's why there was a clause that said if he didn't play enough, he wouldn't get the third year. He was at or near the top of most people's lists of free agent RFers, the deal was not super expensive at the time it was made, and not many people thought it would be awful. Sure, there was a chance things wouldn't work out, but nobody predicted him playing some of the worst baseball of his career and not getting along with a single player on the team.

<!--quoteo-->QUOTE <!--quotec-->2. Expecting Bradley to be a run producer instead of a table setter. This is partly on Lou too. Bradley has never been a guy to drive in a ton of runs or even hit with a ton of power. His OBP is way too high and slugging too low to not bat at the top of the order.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
In his previous two seasons before signing the deal, Bradley's slugging percentage was .557. Stick that in with a healthy Lee and Ramirez, add in his .425 OBP over that same time span (for a .982 OPS), and he's worth every bit of that $10mil per year hitting in the middle of the order.

<!--quoteo-->QUOTE <!--quotec-->3. Destroying Bradley's trade value by bashing him in the media during the season and suspending him (even though he deserved it).<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
He was in a lose-lose situation by the time it got to this. He probably didn't handle it the best, but when a player calls out the entire organization the way he did numerous times, it's hard to just sit back and do nothing.

Disagree with the move all you want, there were plenty of reasons to think it would go wrong. But just because it went as bad as it possibly could have doesn't mean Hendry was, or is "retarded".