Is Ike Davis Hamburger Meat?
The excitement of the Omar Quintanilla signing has been somewhat muted by the latest comments by the father of Ike Davis, as reported by Adam Rubin in ESPN-NY.
Former Yankee reliever Ron Davis told Rubin that the Mets could have done a better job of trying to trade his son this winter. The elder Davis said:
“I think that’s why the Mets have really screwed up in that situation — because they’ve publicly done it so much, it’s saying to my son, ‘Hey, we don’t want you anymore,’” the ex-Yankee Ron Davis said Tuesday afternoon at a Baseball Assistance Team charity event in Manhattan. “So I think they backed themselves into a corner saying, ‘We want to trade you, but we want ‘X’ amount.’
“Now, with Milwaukee getting [Mark] Reynolds and [Lyle] Overbay and this guy, now they’re backing themselves into a corner. They’re in a situation like, ‘Well, heck, we may have to keep him now.’
“If you would have done it quietly and said, ‘Hey, well people called us’ we didn’t call them,’ then you could have something to say. But when you’ve gone out publicly and said, ‘Hey, we don’t want you here anymore’ basically, he’s learned the game. He’s been in the game four years and playing pro ball for six years. So he understands.
“Like his best friend, Justin Turner, they don’t even tender him a contract. And so it’s like, ‘OK,’ he learned the business quick.”
Hey, I get that Ron Davis is speaking out in defense of his son — he’s never been shy about sharing his feelings going back to the days Ike played college ball at Arizona State. At the same time, Ron Davis is not entirely wrong — the Mets chose to be upfront about their shopping of both Davis and Lucas Duda, and so far, the strategy has backfired. Maybe it was intentional, to drum up interest in “the next Chris Davis,” thinking that a player with a 30-HR season on his resume would be highly coveted.
(Not for nuthin’, but wasn’t it the Omar Minaya-led front office that has been ridiculed for loose lips? Isn’t the Sandy Alderson regime supposed to be so amazingly tight-lipped? Maybe we should check the real stats instead of basing opinions on what we remember — is there a comparison on Fangraphs somewhere?)
Ike’s dad went on to say,
Like I told him, I was released three times, I was traded three times and sold once to Japan. So, who cares? It’s part of the game. I told him, ‘You’re like a piece of hamburger meat, just sitting there at the grocery store. And when you’re first put out there in that wrapper, you look real good — bright and red. And the older you get, you start getting tarnished, a little brownish, and people don’t pick you as much.
Interesting choice of words — it really gets to the meat of the situation. But hey, at least Ike is no chopped liver. Again, Ron’s not entirely wrong — it’s a visual that applies to just about any professional athlete. The only problem with his declaration, however, is that when the Mets put the ground chuck out into the display case, it was already turning a brownish gray. Now, it’s time to slap on that bright orange “manager’s special” sticker. Or, take the meat out of the case, bring it back into the kitchen, make meat loaf, and see if the deli counter can sell it.
By the way, the rest of Adam Rubin’s piece with Ron Davis is fun reading on a wintry day. I recommend you check it out and see more of Ron’s thoughts about how Citi Field, the media, and other outside elements have affected his son’s performance — which, according to Ron, is not nearly as bad as everyone thinks. Hey, he’s a dad, can you blame him?
Post your notes in the comments.
Item of the Day
Sorry, I couldn’t resist: Hamburger Helper Variety Pack – 6 pk.
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Joe Janish began MetsToday in 2005 to provide the unique perspective of a high-level player and coach -- he earned NCAA D-1 All-American honors as a catcher and coached several players who went on to play pro ball. As a result his posts often include mechanical evaluations, scout-like analysis, and opinions that go beyond the numbers. Follow Joe's baseball tips on Twitter at @onbaseball and at the On Baseball Google Plus page.
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That said, wouldn’t it be just absolutely CRAZY for the Mets brass to consider building a team around their home park? I know, it’s nuts, since the owners went on public record explaining that they built the park precisely because they wanted a stadium that would reward pitching, defense, and speed.
But what the heck do I know?
And there may just be a few MetsToday readers who are old enough to get the reference.
“At least Ike is no chopped liver” – very funny, but, ahem, chopped liver is part of a traditional Jewish diet, sir. So I think that would be an improvement over ground meat, metaphorically speaking.
It’s obvious the Mets have to move someone before April, so neither Davis nor Duda can take it personally that someone has to go. With that being the case, I don’t think it hurts Davis’s ego that they weren’t willing to let him go without getting someone of value in return. Remember how Jim Bouton couldn’t shake the debasement of being traded for Dooley Womack?
Davis could – possibly – go into the 2014 year with his head on straight and a desire to prove everyone wrong. I hope he does, for everyone’s sake.
Or he could whimper off into the sunset. Time will tell.
2. Just because chopped liver is part of Jewish cuisine doesn’t make it better. Certainly, it’s more expensive per pound, but better? Up for debate. Sure, plenty of iron and protein, but also incredibly high amounts of fat and cholesterol.
3. You’re maybe missing my intent on the chopped liver idiom — though, I’m glad you found the humor. Per Wikipedia:
< < Since eating chopped liver may not be appreciated by everyone, the Jewish English expression "What am I, chopped liver?", signifies frustration or anger at being ignored on a social level.
An alternative explanation for the etymology of the "What am I, chopped liver?" expression is that chopped liver was traditionally served as a side dish rather than a main course. The phrase, therefore may have originally meant to express a feeling of being overlooked, as a "side dish." >>
So, while Ike Davis stunk in 2013 (get it? many people think chopped liver stinks too), one thing can’t be denied this winter: he has been anything but overlooked. In fact, there’s been more media attention and discussion surrounding Ike Davis than any other Met this offseason. That said, he’s not chopped liver.
All in good fun. It’s about time I’ve had something marginally entertaining to write about.
Papa Davis was quite candid, and that was a good read. With today’s media/internet world, it is hard to tell how “guarded” at team can be with potential trades, althoough there have been some (like the Prince Fielder deal) that have been kept below radar. In retrospect, Papa D is right, especially in NY. The beat reporters that have nothing to do in Florida for a month will play psychotherapist and continue to ask Ike “How did that make you feel?”. But, Ike is a big boy, and perhaps this will help him grow up and refocus. As Izzy said, I’m not sure how much more motivation you need outside of the possibility that a good job performance can earn you guaranteed income of $15 million/year. Go get ‘em, Ike.
1) Ike’s swing looks better, his value rises in other teams’ eyes, and the Pirates cough up a solid prospect for him.
2) Ike’s still got a big hitch and a slow bat, and the Mets can’t get anything for him, and they’re forced to choose between (a) losing with him in MLB and hoping he comes around, or (b) stashing him in AAA and basically giving up on the guy.
I assume the Mets would choose (a), the course of unreasonable optimism, as per their past behavior.