With September here, Chicago Cubs outfielder Alfonso Soriano will be staying right where he wants to be. Any talk of wanting to win or excuses about the weather are just that—excuses.
Soriano reportedly turned down a trade to the Giants previously because he wasn’t fond of the weather in San Francisco.
Giants players beg to differ. Angel Pagan said on ESPN Chicago, “I’ve been in pretty much every division and when you play in a place like San Francisco your body lasts longer. It’s good, I like it.”
Soriano’s former teammate Ryan Theriot agreed that the temperatures are more comfortable while adding, “It’s a big ballpark.”
Theriot went on to say, “From a hitter’s standpoint, there are a lot of things stacked up against you when you go out there. It’s a challenge, but you can hit there.”
Therein lies one of the reasons. While Soriano couldn’t give a damn about winning—he does care about his numbers, and those are likely to dwindle at a much tougher hitters’ park than Wrigley Field.
Soriano’s latest blurb was reported in Paul Sullivan’s column in the Chicago Tribune Saturday, saying “It’s one month, so it’d have to be a perfect place for me to go because I don’t want to go anywhere for one month.”
That statement comes in the same article where he’s quoted, “I like it here, but I don’t like to lose, especially late in my career. I just want to go someplace to win.”
If he were telling the truth, what kind of hardship would it be to go for one month to a team with a chance to win a championship?
Another fallacy is the reason he allegedly rejected a trade to the Giants—the weather.
San Francisco is the most temperate climate in the U.S. The range of temperature varies less than anywhere else in the country.
He would have arrived in August to an average high of 67 and low of 55. September is 70 and 56, while October, if the Giants made it that far, is 69 and 55.
In contrast, Chicago averages a high of 58 in April with a low of 37. I’ve been there many days when I wished it was 37. The same for May. I’ve spent many a Memorial Day freezing at Wrigley.
While it might not get as warm in San Francisco as Chicago, it also gets nowhere near as cold. I think that would be a lot harder on Soriano’s knees than playing in the city by the bay.
The Giants’ former home—Candlestick Park—was famous for the wind whipping off the bay and generally freezing everybody out. They took that into consideration building AT&T Park to ensure the same weather conditions would not prevail there.
It’s just another excuse for a player who’s comfortable losing. There is no pressure. That wouldn’t be true with the Giants, though Soriano was feeling pretty smug about himself after belting a homer Friday.
“I feel sorry for them if they tried to (acquire) me because they know what I can do.”
I know what he can do too. Three hits in 28 at-bats in six playoff games in 2007 and 2008 with nary an extra-base hit or RBI.
That’s why I wanted him gone.
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