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A clubhouse cancer with Giants? Pierzynski clears the air

July 5, 2012, 10:36 am

CHUCK GARFIEN

 

The next time you see A.J. Pierzynski in a White Sox uniform, feel free to take a moment to thank the one man who helped bring the contentious catcher to the South Side in the first place.

 

“I think I was conceived because Hawk Harrelson was alive,” Pierzynski joked during an interview for Inside Look: A.J. Pierzynski, which premieres Saturday at 7:00 p.m. on Comcast SportsNet.

 

Pierzynski was being sarcastic, but in reality, if it wasn’t for the longtime White Sox broadcaster, a family friend of the Pierzynski family since A.J. was a sophomore in high school, the backstop would have ended up somewhere like Baltimore or Tampa. Both teams offered him a contract, but Chicago was the only place he wanted to be.

 

“We kept going to Kenny, and Kenny was like 'I don't know, I've heard all these bad things, and I don't know, I've gotta talk to my people,’” Pierzynski said. “Finally, I guess Hawk got a hold of him, sat down and told him he'd take care of me, so Kenny finally consented and I've been here ever since.”

 

While some players last their whole careers without making a single ripple of controversy, Pierzynski has been in the middle of the ocean, hanging ten on 20-foot waves, infamously surfing his way from one embroilment to the other.

 

Rangers manager Ron Washington not selecting him to the All-Star team is merely the latest public squabble involving the White Sox catcher, but certainly not the first.

 

That would be the notorious blowup that occurred in 2004 when Pierzynski was with the San Francisco Giants. In a story that ran in the Oakland Tribune that season, Pierzynski almost caused a mutiny among the Giants pitching staff.

 

“The pitchers aren’t happy with him. If they can trade him, that would be fine with me,” one player said. Another called him a “cancer.”

 

Several pitchers questioned Pierzynski’s work ethic. He was accused of giving his team’s signs to the opposition and for criticizing Giants pitchers to the Padres Phil Nevin while Nevin was hitting.

 

After years of speculation, Pierzynski wanted to set the record straight.

 

“Basically one guy came out and said that.”

 

I brought up Brett Tomko, the Giants pitcher who has long been associated with throwing Pierzynski under the bus.

 

“Well, he says he didn't,” Pierzynski said. “But I know Matt Herges, he said some things, some other guys said some things…you know, they have their right, and one of the things I was accused of was getting the other team signs. Anyone that knows me, I would never in a million years give the other team, tell the other team what's coming. What’s funny is the guy who wrote the article, wrote this article and never asked me about it. He just wrote the article, and then it became a national perception that I was doing all these things when nobody still had ever asked me about it. That's the one thing I get most mad about.”

 

After giving up Joe Nathan, Francisco Liriano, and Boof Bonser to acquire him from Minnesota, the Giants released Pierzynski after just one season.

 

With the perception of being a clubhouse cancer, it wasn’t exactly the greatest situation to walk into as a free agent.

 

“It wasn't hard to get a job. I could've had a job, but it was hard to get the right job,” Pierzynski said. “It was hard to find a job where I could come in and play everyday and not basically…you always had to earn your spot, but really without coming in and trying to basically…start over, almost like a first-year guy.”

 

Pierzynski instantly found a home with the White Sox, who in that first season won the 2005 World Series.

 

As for the 2004 Giants, safe to say A.J. won’t be invited to any future reunions?

 

“I don't know about that. There's still some guys on that team that I talk to. Scott Eyre, a former White Sox guy, I talk to all the time. As far as that goes, I don't know the answer to that, because if you look at it, we didn't have a bad year. I didn't have a bad year. We missed the playoffs on the last day.”

 

Unless he and the White Sox strike a deal sometime this summer, Pierzynski will become a free agent after this season. Kenny Williams won’t need a pitch this time from Hawk Harrelson to sign him.

 

On pace for career-highs in home runs and RBIs, Pierzynski might be taking care of that all by himself.

I certainly hope we keep AJ for at least a couple more years. The move to bring AJ to the Sox was one of the best ones made by the team

I keep hoping we sign AJ long enough so he can finish his career here but we never do that. The only caveat is that Flowers ain't exactly lighting it up at the plate so we may just indeed keep AJ.

Edited July 6, 201213 yr by LVSoxFan

What contract do you offer?

 

1 year, $7.5-8 million?

 

2 years, $14-15 million?

 

Long time to go before the end of the season, but it doesn't seem likely Flowers can hit over .200 at the major league level. He has HUGE pop in his bat, but a big swing and just not enough contact.

 

 

There's no doubt in my mind, down the Road AJ is a coach in the Sox system.

All that "bad" work ethic stuff just seems funny now. He has been on the DL once in his career and will get pretty close to catching 2,000 games.

 

 

 

I certainly hope we keep AJ for at least a couple more years. The move to bring AJ to the Sox was one of the best ones made by the team

You said it, Brotha!

There's no doubt in my mind, down the Road AJ is a coach in the Sox system.

There's very little doubt in my mind that AJ will have bigger fish to fry than coaching. He's good at making money in other ventures. I could certainly see him broadcasting, though.

Having AJ around for another couple years would be ideal. He's still got some good play left in him, the pitching staff are used to him, and it gives some of the catchers in the minors (Phegley and Smith particularly) another year or two to develop (and for Flowers to develop in the majors). Ideal would be a 1 year plus 1 year option type deal.

 

I'm afraid he's going to be very expensive after this year, but not likely at all to repeat these numbers. At 35, this smells of the kind of situation where it's really hard to let the guy walk, but might be easily the right decision.

 

I like him, would love to keep him, but not for 3/36 or anything.

 

AJ is a warrior. I love the guy. His role was as prominent as any in winning the Series in 2005. Hometown discount perhaps?

There's no doubt in my mind, down the Road AJ is a coach in the Sox system.

He will not be a coach. No one can stand the guy and no one will listen to him as a coach.

Hometown discount perhaps?

He's owes the White Sox nothing.

All that "bad" work ethic stuff just seems funny now. He has been on the DL once in his career and will get pretty close to catching 2,000 games.

The work ethic stuff is all wrong. He works as hard or harder than anyone on the field. That stuff was said because the guy didn't like him. AJ is a grade A jerk but is a good ball player and works hard at the game.

The work ethic stuff is all wrong. He works as hard or harder than anyone on the field. That stuff was said because the guy didn't like him. AJ is a grade A jerk but is a good ball player and works hard at the game.

i never read anything on it, or saw when it happend,(saw a video online i think) but what happend between aj and floyd in ny?

i never read anything on it, or saw when it happend,(saw a video online i think) but what happend between aj and floyd in ny?

 

yeah I'm in the same boat, I was out of town but caught a little video highlight of their "words" during the Yankees game last weekend on my MLB at bat app. I never saw anything about it here.

i never read anything on it, or saw when it happend,(saw a video online i think) but what happend between aj and floyd in ny?

I don't know what happened between him and floyd. I was referring to the comments from the giants pitcher before the Sox signed him.

He will not be a coach. No one can stand the guy and no one will listen to him as a coach.

I doubt he'd coach, but not because of that. There are plenty of jerks, if he really is one, coaching and managing today. It has been said that AJP's personality has mellowed since he became a father.

Part of me can't wait until he leaves Chicago, so we can hear some of the stories the beat reporters have been sitting on.

He's owes the White Sox nothing.

 

Hometown discounts are not really about owing anything to anyone. Its that AJ has been playing here for 8 seasons, has a 2nd home here, likes the city, likes the organization, and staying means not having to start a bunch of things over. Its just easier and more comforable. And I'd be AJ would be willing to stay, even if the deal were slightly less dollars than offered elsewhere, for those reasons. Not a LOT less, but a little.

 

The work ethic stuff is all wrong. He works as hard or harder than anyone on the field. That stuff was said because the guy didn't like him. AJ is a grade A jerk but is a good ball player and works hard at the game.

 

Thanks for the synopsis, I know you have some sources. Sounds about right.

 

Part of me can't wait until he leaves Chicago, so we can hear some of the stories the beat reporters have been sitting on.

I doubt you will hear any if any are out there. Gonzalez is a class act, and isn't afraid of players. If he had something he thought was newsworthy, he'd put it out there. I don't think Gregor would do anything. The only one Cowardly enough, is you know who the former beat writer, and he gets along with AJ. I really don't know how many don't like AJ, I'm guessing Peavy is one, but the notion that everyone hates him is false. Face it, he was part of the "idiots" with Rowand and Crede, and I used to see him from time to time out with Dye on off days.

 

 

I doubt you will hear any if any are out there. Gonzalez is a class act, and isn't afraid of players. If he had something he thought was newsworthy, he'd put it out there. I don't think Gregor would do anything. The only one Cowardly enough, is you know who the former beat writer, and he gets along with AJ. I really don't know how many don't like AJ, I'm guessing Peavy is one, but the notion that everyone hates him is false. Face it, he was part of the "idiots" with Rowand and Crede, and I used to see him from time to time out with Dye on off days.

Gonzales isn't afraid of players, but on occasion when he hears something, he is indeed going to sit on it if revealing it would seriously screw up his relationship with the team. He needs some of those connections intact to succeed. Its a tough balancing act, knowing how far he can push certain things about certain people.

 

i never read anything on it, or saw when it happend,(saw a video online i think) but what happend between aj and floyd in ny?

 

Not sure, but I'm guessing it was probably something along the line of...

 

"I knew I should have thrown that guy a cutter."

 

"Right. I'm the reason Robin is coming to get you. The problem is that when you get behind you're too damn predictable. You want to stay in the game? Try executing the pitches that I call."

Edited July 6, 201213 yr by scenario

I'm afraid he's going to be very expensive after this year, but not likely at all to repeat these numbers. At 35, this smells of the kind of situation where it's really hard to let the guy walk, but might be easily the right decision.

 

I like him, would love to keep him, but not for 3/36 or anything.

AJ got 2/$8 million as a 34 year old free agent catcher. He's having a great year this year, but a 36 year old free agent catcher isn't likely to outearn a 34 year old free agent catcher.

AJ got 2/$8 million as a 34 year old free agent catcher. He's having a great year this year, but a 36 year old free agent catcher isn't likely to outearn a 34 year old free agent catcher.

 

With the year AJ is having, the dearth of decent catchers, and the contracts getting thrown around for catchers in the last year, I would bet the numbers AJ would see on the open market would make most of us sick.