Man, I love pizza.
All kinds. All brands. There is no bad pizza, just pizza that isn’t as good as the greatest pizza. I’d love to grab a slice or three for lunch today.
But I won’t.
Because pizza is bad for me.
I’ll eat pizza soon enough. But the rationalizations will be banked by then. ‘I’ve ate pretty good all week’ works. So does ‘instead of running 2 miles, I’ll run 5’. But pizza on a Monday afternoon? It’s just setting me up to not feel real great about myself.
Did I mention that Ruben Tejada signed with the Cardinals over the weekend?
Cardinals sign former Mets infielder Ruben Tejada to a one-year contract. pic.twitter.com/x2cDLYXEYP
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) March 19, 2016
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All of these things are true:
1) Ruben Tejada is 26 years old and entering the prime of his career.
2) Ruben Tejada is a versatile player that has experience at SS, 2B and 3B at the major league level.
3) Getting Ruben Tejada for 1.5M dollars over 1 year is a contract that the Cardinals can afford. With Tejada entering free-agency at the end of the season, he should be motivated to do his best work.
4) The Cardinals need MLB ready depth at SS with the absence of Jhonny Perlata through (at least) the first half of the 2016 season.
But as Bernie pointed out over at 101 Sports, there are warning flags:
In 2013, Mets GM Sandy Alderson complained about Tejada’s work ethic in an interviewwith New York sports-radio station WFAN, saying: “One of the problems with Ruben Tejada is it’s like pulling teeth. It’s extra batting practice, extra this, extra that, it doesn’t happen, necessarily, unless someone else is insisting on it. We need to see a commitment to improvement. He’s going to have to earn it.”
In 2015 spring training, Jose Reyes (then with Toronto) expressed similar frustration with Tejada, saying that he had tried to mentor the young Tejada during their time as Mets teammates. But Reyes said Tejada ignored his advice.
“Something’s wrong,” Reyes told New York Newsday. “Every time I talk to him I try to give him some advice. What can I do? I try to push him to do stuff. I don’t know if he gets it or not. He had the opportunity to be the everyday shortstop for a long time there in New York. You have to work, man. When you’re younger, you think you have everything there for you. But if you do something wrong, it’s going to go away. Quick.”
How did 2015 end up for Mr. Tejada?
Meh.
He had an overall WAR of -0.1 and an oWAR of 1.9 with a -1.5 dWAR. He batted .261 w/ 23 2B, 28 RBIs and an OPB of .338 over 407 plate appearances.
If it means anything to you, Tejada was 0-5 w/ 5 strikeouts before exiting the ’15 NLDS after suffering a broken leg on a slide into 2B by Chase Utley. It was his only postseason appearance.
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Ruben Tejada is getting a super-ideal opportunity.
He’s been inserted into a lineup that is expected to be very good. He’s playing in a city that will give him unconditional support from game 1. He doesn’t have to carry a squad, he just has to not hurt it.
Any positive contributions will lauded. Any negative plays/games won’t be fretted over. They’ll be chalked up to ‘we’re just waiting on Peralta to come back’.
This is his time.
Question… is Tejada a pizza player? Someone that looks delicious in theory but isn’t good for you every day?
We’ll find out soon.
Also, I feel like you should know this:
https://twitter.com/ant_ajello/status/657659224063918080
Photo: FOX Sports
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