Fan Gauge: Milton Bradley

Going to drive down to Anaheim when the Mariners play there, catch Bradley off guard, and be like “We’re going to fucking Disneyland whether you like it or not”

One of my favorite all-time Mariners already.

I demand to know who voted that they hat Milty. WHO?

but I think two smart guys like us will figure it out.

My opinion should have a capital O for “Obvious” perhaps, but here it goes:

- I guess I like Milton Bradley the baseball player and I think his bat helps this team, even if inconsistent.

- I don’t like Milton Bradley the person. All the off-field problems, blah blah blah, he’s probably a jerk if you know him personally, all that’s been said a million times. Lot’s of athletes are not exactly model citizens and yet we still adore them. That’s not what bothers me about Bradley though.

- I get very annoyed by his whiny “woe is me” attitude where he acts like his life is so terrible and he has had hard luck and we should all feel sorry for him (remember his interview at the start of the year where he complained that he couldn’t go out in public in Chicago?) DUDE – you are a professional baseball player! You make millions of dollars a year to play a game for a living! Your life is not tragic in any way. You are the envy of all us “normal” people who toil away to make ends meet. Shut up, we aren’t buying it. Or, if you are really convinced that your life is miserable, call me up and we can trade places (you’ll have to teach me how to hit). I’ll even buy you an ice cream cone first.

- Much has been made of the love-fest that is the Mariners clubhouse these days, so all this is perhaps less of a risk here than anywhere else, which is why I hesitated a lot before voting “don’t like”.

I would vote love for Mike Sweeney if we had traded Carlos Silva for him.

And it’s multi-tiered. Considering how he got through, what he went through, how good he is as a baseball player, and how he acts as an entertainer, it’s very simple.

Milton is just the best.

Really, when the team traded for Milton Bradley, I tried to keep an open mind. He’s clearly done things to cause the majority of the fanbase from nearly every team he’s ever been on to hate him. On top of that he’s done things that have made him a radioactive player to most ballclubs. I don’t support or defend his past. He’s clearly had issues and could stand to handle things much better than he chose to do so.

With that said, I wanted Milton Bradley himself to give me reasons to hate him. I wanted to see Milton Bradley, the person, after being given the support that this organization provides. If he can’t make it here, I’m fairly certain that he’s going to be out of baseball by default.

But thanks to fans of other clubs either trying to constantly warn us about what to expect from Milton Bradley or exclaiming that we’re experiencing “stages of Milton Bradley” I couldn’t help but root for him right out of the gate. Bradley calls himself the “Ron Artest of baseball.” To me he channels the spirit of a wrestling heel (bad guy). There’s no way Bradley can fix his baseball image but he can certainly have fun with it. I’m having a blast with the “Milton Bradley experience.”

If he picks up his hitting, It will be bumped up to love. I love =/ =) =/ and his interviews, but it’s hard for me to love him until he actually starts hitting. Just a response to his early season slumps.