Move over Jess Todd, Adam Reifer is the one who will destroy us all.
“Basically every player I play, I grow a hatred toward them. I just hate them. No one’s going to take me down, I have to go out there and destroy them.”
If you’re looking for a definition of a “closer mentality”, I think that would be it. Just a great look at Adam Reifer by BA.
- Adam Ottavino packed his struggles and took them with him to Arizona. He lasted two innings, allowing three runs on five hits.
- His teammate Brad Furnish followed and wasn’t a whole lot better, allowing two runs on a pair of hits and a pair of walks. He struck out one. Obviously, it would be nice to see these two get on track.
- Brett Wallace didn’t have the debut he had hoped for, going 0-4.
- Steve Hill doubled, then jumped back in his taxi and drove off into the mountain ranges of Arizona.
- Tyler Greene, playing second base in deference to Gordon Beckham, went 1-4.
- Arnoldi Cruz doubled. Four of his seven base hits have been doubles so far.
Entries (RSS)
I really, really, really liked Adam Reifer before the season. Now, though, I think I just may be falling for that man.
Don’t judge me.
What are Niko and Marti up too? We could sure use them on Wall Street, maybe they are moonlighting as investment bankers, is it any wonder that the crash started around the time the minor league season was wrapping up?
hate to get political, but the crash started long before that….like 8 years ago
baziiing!!!!
really, i’m kidding….sort of
Does anyone else find Reifer’s comments a little psychoish? It is one thing to want to “take down” the opponent but to hate them? I don’t know I have just never heard anyone go to the extreme that he does.
P.S. I believe Adam had to pay extra to the airline to pack his struggles and take them with him.
great article in BA. Reifer sounds intense. I like it.
No politics! You have no idea how I am looking forward to when the election season is over!
cardsfan1–I hear what you are saying. I don’t think he hates them as a person, and I’m normally not a fan of flippantly throwing around the word hate. I don’t think if he runs into the other team after the game at Waffle House, he’s going to beat them up. I think his hatred only extends to when they are standing in the box.
Hopefully Adam is just getting rid of those struggles right up front. That’s probably it. The AFL is a tough, tough league for pitchers.
hey, I completly understand where Reifer is coming from. I played several sports in high school and college, and that mentality can really serve a person well. You don’t necessarily hate someone. You hate what they are trying to do to you, i.e. score on you, hit a homer off you, run over you, etc…. That guy is gonna do his BEST to make me look bad, and I have to hate that.
Most of the sports greats were a bit like that. They HATE to get beat.
well i do know this….if an opponent read this(not sure why they would), but if they do, i bet they think twice before crowding the plate next time they face him…and that’s half the battle right there
I was thinking about Az’s litmus test post. I am starting to think that outside of moving an outfielder this offseason, it might be in the teams best interest to stand pretty much pat. There will be a cry for the team to spend all of the dollars coming off the books, but I am wondering if it isn’t better to save that bullet. I am proposing trading either Ankiel or Ludwick and bringing up Rasmus to start. Bring up Boggs to start until we can see what Carpenter has to offer. At that point we can explore the trade market early; try to bring in a player or two in the final year of their contract; and have the cash to sign them to a long term deals. Brainstorming here. I am thinking that entering the trade market early in the season might give us a chance to spin Todd, Anderson, and/or Mort into impact type major leaguers rather than having to settle for a free agent.
For whatever it may be worth, you heard those exact same sentiments from Bob Gibson all the time. Not to mention old Al Hrabosky.