It's June. That means the weather is heating up. The kids are enjoying the beginning of summer vacation, and the Milton Bradley meltdown watch is in full swing.
It just came a little early this season.
Over his career, Bradley has gotten more press coverage for being a player with a career high of 67 RBI than anyone else in history. He has amazingly underachieved and imploded with stunning accuracy almost every year.
Bradley has worn out his welcome in every stop along his MLB journey. He is currently on his sixth MLB team in nine seasons.
That should set off alarms right there. There is a reason he keeps moving from team to team: He is a clubhouse cancer.
I had actually intended to write an article about how Bradley had actually started to produce so far this season and ask how long until he imploded. He beat me to it.
This latest incident should raise concerns for a Texas team with a young core of players that desperately need a leader and not a cancer.
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According to reports, Bradley attempted to confront Royals television announcer Ryan Lefebvre in the press box following a game due to what he believed were unfair comments made on the air.
As the Rangers' DH, Bradley was able to watch the broadcast when he wasn't on the field and took offense to a comparison Lefebrve made between him and Josh Hamilton.
Manager Ron Washington and GM Jon Daniels chased after him and stopped Bradley before he got to Lefebvre, at which point Bradley returned to the clubhouse in tears and said, "All I want to do is play baseball and make a better life for my kid than I had, that's it," Bradley said to a quiet clubhouse. "I love all you guys. ... I'm strong, but I'm not that strong."
Nothing like making someone's point for him, is there Milton?
By acting like a junior high kid trying to beat everyone up, you just proved your critics right. Great job. This team gave you a chance just like the other six and this is how you repay them?
How about sending a member from Rangers media relations to set up an interview with Lefebvre so he can get to know you? Then maybe he would have come on the air and talked about meeting you, not having to be afraid of a bully like you.
Bradley has had these kind of incidents before from altercations with Cleveland Manager Eric Wedge, Dodgers second baseman Jeff Kent, and Umpire Brian Runge to incidents with fans all across the big leauges.
He has not always instigated the incidents or even been in the wrong, but the shear number of incidents makes defending him a hard sell. Sound like a pitcher named Roger?
The trading deadline is July 31, and it is almost a certain lock that by then Bradley will be moving on to team number seven. To those fans and media I say good luck and don't forget to duck.
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2 months ago
I think ya'll have it completly wrong based on a Ranger fan. I can't speak for all fans here, but I don't think his actions have been that bad at all. Sure I'll admit he does have emotional problems, but can you blame the guy after everyone seems to overreact to outcomes like this. He did have a press conference which I heard was very straightforward and honest today as well. As a Ranger fan as long as his numbers keep up, I have no problem with these small "scuffles". Ranger fans have seen far worse such as Kenny Rogers explosion on a cameraman a few years ago. Not one punch was thrown in this incident. Bradley even deserve to be an all star this year believe it or not based on true numbers. If Josh Hamilton didn't hit in front of him he would really insane rbi numbers as well.
2 months ago
Good article, but honestly, why is this news!? Bradley is the biggest hothead the MLB has seen since Carl Everett.
2 months ago
This is pretty sad, because Bradley could have been a really nice player in the MLB if he could keep his temper under control. That said, he's still a very admirable player!
from 2 months ago
he has underachieved greatly during his career part because of injuries oart because he has acted like a total tool
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