Normally I wouldn’t ponder about the performance of Drew, especially one day after he hammered a go-ahead double in last night’s 5-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox, but his comments after the game sent a friendly reminder of the type of player he’s been — soft.
“It’s almost like an off day, but it’s not,” Drew said. “It’s a nice break for the legs, the stress of going after balls in the outfield, cutting balls off in the gap - it’s nice to get a break from that.”
Wait a minute, the “stress” of going after balls in the outfield? Sorry, J.D., we didn’t mean to hinder your bliss of YOU. This serves as yet another case in which if J.D. Drew doesn’t feel 100%, he won’t mind having a day or two off. His career-high in games played during a single season is 146. Drew is certainly not one to grind out a game. Baseball Prospectus broke down a yearly overview of Drew’s injuries since 2000. Below is the assertion from 2001.
“Lower back sprain, bruised chest, wrenched ankle, strep throat, broken hand. No, it’s not Les Nessman’s winter itinerary, it’s a brief overview of J.D.’s 2001 Medical Mystery Tour. When Drew was in the lineup, he was in a very select group of performers in a cluster behind Barry Bonds, and every bit as good as advertised. Hopefully, he won’t take the Fred Lynn career path into several immovable objects. If he can find his way to 650 plate appearances, he’ll be a good bet for the NL MVP Award.”
He was the hero last night, but overall the outfielder still has the representation of an oft-injured, delicate player. If I were him, I’d be doing what I could to rid the depiction of “Nancy” Drew from my name.
Compare Drew to the injured, but currently active 3B Mike Lowell (hip) and we see two contrasting styles in play. As a fan, you have to give it to Mikey Lowell — his hip injury is seriously bothering him — you can see him laboring when he runs the bases.
Mike Lowell is a type of player that the Sox need. With David Ortiz lamenting his oft-injured wrist, it’s almost a necessity that guys like Drew, Lowell, Kevin Youkilis, and Dustin Pedroia stay healthy. Youkilis just missed a game because of a shoulder issue while weight-lifting.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but in-season weightlifting for baseball should consist of light-weights and high-reps — is that accurate? With the left-fielder from Washington Heights gone, the Red Sox’ lineup isn’t as intimidating as it used to be, so it’s important for guys to avoid a stint on the DL. The Red Sox are certainly not on the right foot as far as that goes, as Tim Wakefield, an integral part of the rotation, was placed on the DL yesterday.
To sum this up, Ortiz is hurting, Lowell is laboring, Drew is being Drew, Youkilis is thinking he’s Ronnie Coleman, and Wakefield is resting his strained shoulder. We have a pitcher making his Major League debut tonight, and as far as the young “phenom” that is Clay Buchholz, his confidence is currently at an all-time low.
Well, at least Crawford & Longoria hit the DL….
August 15th, 2008 at 7:07 am
[...] Lansdowne 9: Drew, Drew, Drew. What in the world are we going to do with you? Just keep hitting like you are and I suppose we won’t have a problem.. but I’ve got my eye on you sir. [...]
October 17th, 2008 at 5:49 pm
You must be blind to ridicule J.D. Drew in such a petty manner.
First, Drew stepped up for Ortiz and hit for power and average. He was much more mobile on the basepaths than Ortiz, and dutifully relinquished said position when Ortiz returned, even if it were too depress the Red Sox team average consequently.
Second, Drew (without the power of hindsight) wasn’t just injured. He had a severely herniated disc in his lower back. If you’ve ever witnessed or felt first hand the sort of pain that accompanies that sort of injury, then you’re bound to retract any “Nancy”ing you’ve slandered Drew with.
Third, I admit, Mike Lowell has shown tremendous capacity for playing while hurt, but I ask this of you, does it not affect his gameplay? Surely, in the ALDS, we have seen that Lowell’s injury definitively limits his reach to the third-base side. He bobbled or simply missed sharp liners hit along the foul line because he wasn’t able to muster the strength or agility to simulate his typical gold-glove defense. With Youkilis at third, (mind you, his original position from high-school-AAA days, so please, World, stop commenting on how hard it is for him to flip to the other side of the diamond) and Kotsay at first, the Red Sox are much more defensively mobile. That is to say, if Lowell hadn’t been on the field, “toughing it out” we would not have given up as many base hits which turned into Halo runs. Drew was responsible for sitting out when he knew he wasn’t 100% capable of helping his team.
Finally, the most disastrous example of a player “toughing it out” is Josh Beckett and his strained oblique. That injury easily removes 5-6mph from your 4-seam fastball. I’m closely related to a former trainer for the San Diego Padres, and he assures me that when Padres pitchers received similar injuries, they were swiftly placed on the 15-day DL, if not the 60-Day IR, because there is no remedy for that injury save rest and time. Beckett insisted that he go out there to face the Halos, and more recently the Rays, and we suffered for it. So fuck all this Nancy bullshit. A player knows when he’s capable of playing, and knows when he’s not. This isn’t Manny forgetting which knee to limp on. This is a clutch-hitter who’s persevered through injuries to bring another chance to our Red Sox to defend our World Series Champion Title.