Pudge

I was saddened this morning when I heard that Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez had been traded by the Tigers to the New York Yankees. Pudge came to Detroit 4 1/2 years ago and has really helped to turn the team around. Not only has he done this with his stellar play and great work ethic, but he has done it with class. It is no surprise that he is leaving the organization with that same classy style.

"My 4 1/2 years in a Detroit uniform were very good, very nice," Rodriguez said. "People thought Detroit was never going to be a winning team. And guess what? We played in the World Series. We hired a good manager, one of the best managers in the game. It's unbelievable."

I contrast that with words I heard from Manny Ramirez this morning that he spoke about his team, the Boston Red Sox:

"The Red Sox don't deserve a player like me," Ramirez said. "During my years here, I've seen how they [the Red Sox] have mistreated other great players when they didn't want them to try to turn the fans against them.

"The Red Sox did the same with guys like Nomar Garciaparra and Pedro Martinez, and now they do the same with me. Their goal is to paint me as the bad guy," Ramirez added. "I love Boston fans, but the Red Sox don't deserve me. I'm not talking about money. Mental peace has no price, and I don't have peace here."

Thanks Pudge for all you've done and thanks for being a great leader by example! I'll miss seeing you with the old English "D" on your chest.