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During a recent interview with WQXI in Atlanta, Braves LHP Tom Glavine had the following to say about…
…why he declined his option with the Mets…
“I needed to make my mind up on that option within five days of the end of the season, and within five days of the end of the season, I wasn’t really sure I still wanted to play the game, so I knew I had to go through that process – and then, quite honestly, I don’t view myself as a $13–million a year pitcher. I know I could have made that money had I chosen to, but I don’t view myself that way anymore and I’m not going to kid anybody and say that I am.”
…what he feels will be his legacy with the Mets…
“I don’t know, it’s hard to say. Obviously, going there, you wanna win a championship and that didn’t happen. I guess I looked at where the Mets were five years ago and where they are now and it’s a much better organization and it’s a much better team and I’d like to think I had something to do with that…I hope, to some degree, people will look at me as kind of being the first guy who went there and, not totally, but, brought some credibility to what they were trying to do…Hopefully, at the end of the day, people will respect the fact that I went about my business professionally and I handled myself on and off the field.”
To listen to the interview in its entirety, go to . …hat tip to jon s. for the link…
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Gee, just when it was getting easy to dislike him!
Could you imagine if A Rod had made that comment about not being worth the money? Boras’ head would have exploded!
I would wish him well if he hadn’t gone to the Braves.
gotta agree with the less cynical fans who appreciate glavine for the class act that he is. this is a real rarity among major leaguers. he consistently made himself available to the fans for autographs or just bs-ing and does think of himself as a regular guy.
that said i also agree that he knows he made a mistake in coming to the mets and is trying to mend this by finishing up with the braves. i sat through his last 2 starts and it was really painful. i wish tommy good luck on the golf course.
“I don’t view myself as a $13–million a year pitcher. I know I could have made that money had I chosen to, but I don’t view myself that way anymore and I’m not going to kid anybody and say that I am.”
Hogwash… If Atlanta was dumb enough to pay him $13m, he would have been giggling with joy.
he ended up getting 12 mil for next season.
“I hope, to some degree, people will look at me as kind of being the first guy who went there and, not totally, but, brought some credibility to what they were trying to do…Hopefully, at the end of the day, people will respect the fact that I went about my business professionally and I handled myself on and off the field”
We did, until you told us all that you were not disappointed about your last start, which ended our season, and then bolted back to the Braves.
He was disappointed…..he wasn’t “devastated”
And I think that….much like Delgado’s bored comments have been blown wayyyyy outta proportion.
But the problem was that he wasn’t devastated, the problem was that he didn’t seem to care a bit about how devastated the fans were. I’m fine that he wasn’t devastated–he’s a cool customer who’s been through a lot, both winning and losing. But to say that, and not even mention the fact that he felt worst about what he put the fans through, when the collapse had put them through so much already.
Would have been easy to say. Would have been the right thing to say. Glavine is an absolute pro at making the right diplomatic remark. The fact he said nothing spoke volumes to me about his feeling for this organization and the fans.
I believe with that, he tarnished what I feld was a very solid legacy with the Mets. I do not wish him luck (at least not on the field–he needs no well wishes from me on his life, as he’s a multi-millionaire with a wife and kids who obviously adore him). I hope he stays healthy, loses 17 games, retires, and our compensatory pick becomes Doc Gooden sans-blow.
Amen.
Excellent post, Scott.
ill never argue against the guy being a class act, but his attitude after the final game just turned me off alot. im not gonna say something mean like what people have been saying about him rotting in hell and all this nonsense, but id be lying if i said knocking him out early in a game next year wont be very satisfying to watch.
Of course, he’ll probably wind up being lights-out against us for 5 starts.
His legacy will be the stud he was in the 06 playoffs.. and the goat he was to end the 07 season.
And Art Howe set back his chase to 300 about a season and a half..
His comments about his legacy tell me he knows how disliked and never accepted he was by the majority of Mets fans.
I agree … but a large part of that is that from Day 1 he knew he was selling out for the money and his regret of leaving the Braves was almost instant.
As long as he keeps pitching next year like he did in September ‘07, I don’t care what he says!
hard to make him out to be a bad guy. he knows he isnt an ace anymore and would just be a ton of grief coming back to the mets. Good luck and good riddance. Go give up 6 in the 1st for the braves.
We need a catcher and a pitcher. Give the orioles-gomez, milledge-heilman and pelfrey for hernadez and bedard.
Class guy, class act. He never wanted to leave the Braves, and is happy to return. But while he was with the Mets, he gave his best and was always stand up. It’s easy to forget this, but his first couple of years, he was trying to win with Roger Cedeno bungling about in CF and Ty Wigginton hitting 4th or 5th. This after years with the best team in the division, but he never whined, never pointed fingers at his teammates.
Don’t get me wrong: I’m rooting against him when he pitches for the Braves. But that doesn’t change my opinion of him as a person.
One vignette: Three years ago, I went to PSL for Spring Training. Willie had closed the fence where fans stannd for autographs by the players’ parking lot, so most players just blew off the fans and walked quickly to the clubhouse from their cars. Only three players made the trek over to sign autographs: Kaz Ishii (he had just arrived and was likely stunned that anyone knew who he was), David Wright and Tom Glavine. Both DW and TG stayed long enought to sign for everyone, and couldn’t have been more gracious.
F GLAVINE
I’ve commented on like 5 “F Glavine” comments today. Grow up. He is a baseball player doing what is best for him. He is at the end of the career – why should he do anything else?
Granted he didn’t leave under the best terms (the last few games + his comments), but be an adult about it.
F Glavine
He would have gladly taken the money if he wanted to play with the Mets. He did not. He wanted to play with the Braves, he always wanted to play with the Braves. His playing with the Mets will be a footnote with no championships. His “professionalism” did not bring any fire. He was never a true Met.
It’s hysterical, maybe he almost believes the crap he says. Like he wouldn’t take $13 million from the Braves. Like he went to the Braves because he sees himself as an $8 million a year pitcher and the Mets see him as a $13 million a year pitcher. That’s what this decision was about. Ridiculous.
He’s high in the running worldwide for the phoniest phony of them all.
Oh, and your legacy with the Mets, Tom Glavine? That’s an easy one. September 30, 2007. Getting nobody out and not being “devastated” about it. Basically admitting what we all knew about you all along – it was always about you, never about the team. That’s your legacy.
Shove it, Tom Glavine. Choke on your BS.
that’s the funny thing–he sees himself as an $8 million a year pitcher? That’s hardly refreshing.
When I am older and reflecting on my career as a mets fan I will recall the Pete Falcone era with more fondness.
He was never a true Met. One of the things that bothered me was he kept his Georgia license plates on his car (Mercedes) the entire time he was a Met. It sounds small but as you other autograph hounds know, watching the players drive out after the game is kind of special because it’s a good chance of getting an autograph. Always seeing his Georgia plates always kind of irked me for some reason.
I’m a Mets fan. and have georgia plates on my car…I also have a huge Mets sticker on it living in ATL…so I wouldn’t take it too personally…no one down here seems to
This was 5 years neither of us will ever get back…
Cmon mets fans give this guy a break. I truly beleive he gave us his best effort the years he was here. His ” not the end of the world” comment was dumb but probably honest. He had a bad day at the worst time. It wasn’t his fault the mets were desperate at that point. I’m glad he was here. Good luck Tom.
I almost feel bad for the amount of boo’s he is going to get next year at shea.
You know I just watched him on MLB TV at his press conference via the net. And while I want to say :”Classy Guy, Class act, sorry to see him go” I just can’t
Watching him made me throw up my lunch. It was painfully obvious that he came to NY (for the $$) that his heart is, was and always will be with the Braves.
He even said that looking at it from the outside looking in he realized in his time away from his beloved Braves that this (the Braves) was the best run team in baseball.
Good bye Tom I wish we would have had you 16yrs ago and you grew up a Met but you were nothing but a hic up on our team. Your a braveheart and will always be one. I am glad your home with your wife and kids and I can’t wait for the day when Reyes, Castillo, Wright , Lead off with a single, walk and hit a three run homer off of you and your down 3-0 without and out in the first inning!!! GOOD BYE and BAD LUCK(against the Mets.
Then to have Bobby Cox sit there and say we have the best starting 5 in the division and its going to be a dogfight for the starting 5………..Geez can we just pick up one pitcher to stay on pace!!!!!!
If he had chosen any other team besides Atlanta or the Yankees, it wouldn’t bother me as much. The guy signs a lucrative deal 5 years ago, then leaves the Mets for their archrival. I mean, give me a break. The guy is a wet noodle and has no backbone. F Glavine. I lost any respect I had for him. He should have taken his family values to another team besides Atlanta. IMO he’s a yellow belly traitor. I hope the Mets kick his ass when he has to pitch at Shea.
Seriously?? He was a Brave for 16 years before coming to NYC. How does deciding to finish his career with the team he never should have left make him a yellow belly traitor? Wish him ill, fine, but it’s not that hard to understand why he’d want to leave and why he wants to go back to Atlanta.
Again….he is getting killed here because of his comments after the last game. He just shoulda said…yes, I am devastated…..I want to go slit my wrists in the bullpen now……
But he didn’t…he got into semantics w/ the reporters and now he is being killed for it.
Did he want to lose? No, of course not….. Is he “devastated”…no he said he saves that for more serious things…..like death, etc….there are more important things in life than baseball…..he was annoyed, sure…..and he shoulda played the game and just agreed w/ the reporter…but instead he got into a definitions contest w/ them…and it makes him out to be that he doesn’t care.
I’m sure everyone was annoyed…but to say Tommy slept any less worse that night than David Wright for example…is just plain BS.
“I’m sure everyone was annoyed…but to say Tommy slept any less worse that night than David Wright for example…is just plain BS.”
actually, i respectfully disagree. It’s just plain accurate.