How Do You Solve a Problem Like Bartolo?
Ozzie Guillen is griping about Bartolo Colon, but Sox should have seen this coming
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Here's a photo of Bartolo Colon not pitching. These are pretty common.
We don't want to call the White Sox desperate. They've had, all in all, a pretty good year, especially considering their elevation of Gordon Beckham and the way they've managed to get solid contributions out of youngsters like Clayton Richard. And, you know, there's the whole Mark Buehrle-being-perfect thing. If for no other reason than that, 2009 will be memorable.
But before the season started, the Sox were a little bit desperate. They needed pitching. So they went out and signed Bartolo Colon, who was at one point quite good at throwing a baseball. Colon won the Cy Young in 2005; since then he has been consistently injured and transient, and he's struggled to keep his always-burgeoning weight in check.
The White Sox, in their desperation, signed him. Now they're reaping the benefits. Or, more accurately, the lack thereof.
Colon has pitched a mere 62 innings for the Sox in 2009, and Ozzie Guillen is none too pleased with Colon's treatment of his injuries, not to mention his general flakiness as he's attempted to return from injury:
"I was upset because our trainers didn't even know anything about the situation," Guillen said Wednesday after learning Tuesday night that Colon couldn't start the series finale at Minnesota and would be placed on the 15-day disabled list. "When we got the news, I talked to [trainer] Hermie Schneider about it. He didn't have anything about it. I had the [trainer's report] and I don't see anything with Colon, and all of a sudden he couldn't [pitch]."[General Manager] Ken Williams wasn't too happy. ... I think [Colon] handled it the wrong way. You feel something, you should tell the trainers where you're at."
But this is the problem with signing Colon: he doesn't do those things. He doesn't take care of his body. He goes off on long sojourns and doesn't explain where's he gone. He doesn't mention injuries. He's sort of like dealing with a puppy: He barely understands what he's supposed to do, and only rarely does he remember to actually do it.
This is the risk you take when you sign Bartolo Colon. Fortunately, the Sox signed to a one-year incentive-laden deal, and they're not committed long term. Nor should they be. Colon had a chance to redeem his career in Chicago, and he seems content to waste it.
Eamonn Brennan is a Chicago-based writer, editor and blogger. You can also read him at Yahoo! Sports, Mouthpiece Sports Blog, and Inside The Hall, or at his personal site, eamonnbrennan.com. Follow him on Twitter.
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Posted Thursday, Jul 30, 2009 - 11:07 AM CST
