Hall of Fame reliever Goose Gossage is one of several former New York Yankees players with the team in Tampa for spring training to help assist the team in spring training.
Gossage took ten minutes to sit down with ESPN’s Andrew Marchand to discuss the current state of the game, and the pitcher was not in the moos to mince words.
“[Jose] Bautista is a f—ing disgrace to the game,” Gossage, He’s embarrassing to all the Latin players, whoever played before him. Throwing his bat and acting like a fool, like all those guys in Toronto. [Yoenis] Cespedes, same thing.”
Gossage was more than likely referring to Bautista’s bat flip in Game 5 of the ALDS against the Rangers after hitting a go ahead three-run home run last season.
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Gossage wasn’t done yet, after ripping Bautista and Cespedes, Gossage went after the “nerds who are running it.”
“I’ll tell you what has happened, these guys played rotisserie baseball at Harvard or wherever the f— they went, and they thought they figured the f—ing game out. They don’t know s—.
“A bunch of f—ing nerds running the game. You can’t slide into second base. You can’t take out the f—ing catcher because [Buster] Posey was in the wrong position and they are going to change all the rules. You can’t pitch inside anymore. I’d like to knock some of these f—ers on their ass and see how they would do against pitchers in the old days.”
The former Yankee also decided to include Milwaukee outfielder Ryan Braun among his targets. “Ryan Braun is a f—ing steroid user. He gets a standing ovation on Opening Day in Milwaukee. How do you explain that to your kid after throwing people under the bus and lying through his f—ing teeth? They don’t have anyone passing the f—ing torch to these people.
“If I had acted like that, you don’t go in that f—ing dugout. There are going to be 20 f—ing guys waiting for you.”
Next on Gossages’s hit were current relievers and their tendency to pitch only an inning or less. “They have been created from the top, from their computers,” Gossage said. “They are protecting these kids. The first thing a pitcher does when he comes off the mound is ask: ‘How many pitches do I have?’ If I had asked that f—ing question, they would have said: ‘Son, get your ass out there on that mound. If you get tired, we’ll come and get you.'”
After Baustista and Cespedes were told of Gossage’s comments, neither one would take a shot back at Goose.
“He’s a great ambassador for the game,” Bautista told ESPN after being informed of Gossage’s comments. “I don’t agree with him. I’m disappointed that he made those comments, but I’m not going to get into it with him. I would never say anything about him, no matter what he said about me. I have too much good stuff to worry about his comments. Today is my first game [of the spring], getting ready for a new season; hopefully, we will whoop some more ass.”
“Whenever a pitcher strikes someone out, they get to celebrate too and have their moment and revel in it,” Cespedes said. “Why can’t the batters get a chance to enjoy their success, too?
Baseball is lagging behind basketball and football in terms of being able to express yourself on the field and celebrations. Bryce Harper went as far to call baseball ‘tired’ and most people hope Harper at only 23 years old will help usher in the new wave of baseball that is played with flair and intensity.
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