FeLo Forgets His E's

Nats 320 has an interview with Felipe Lopez. What struck me as particularly odd - and whiny - was this passage:

I read that when you got traded from Cincinnati you were expecting the trade. Why?

“Yes, I was expecting it, because of the way they were treating me. Weeks prior to that (The July 13, 2006) trade to Washington--why are they doing this to me, sitting me down, not giving me playing time? Last year (2005), the year before, I was an All Star, leading the league in runs scored, hits and stolen bases and they (Cincinnati Management) were acting funny towards me. I kind of expected the trade. I really smelled it coming. So, I prepared and got myself ready for that (the trade).”

By funny, can you be more specific?

“I am not going to say, just that they were acting funny toward me.”

The way he was treated??? Not giving him playing time? He did not play on June 25, July 1, July 4, and July 7, but prior to that, he had played every game for a total of 85 with the Reds. He didn't play all that well, either, at least not like the All-Star he talks about, and management thought he needed some rest. In April, he hit .255/.333/.392 with 3 homers, 9 RBI, and 20 runs scored. May was a decent month when he hit .310/.391/.398 with 2 homers, 10 RBI, and 16 runs scored. In June, he hit .252/.350/.437 with 4 homers, 11 RBI, and 16 runs scored. Those numbers aren't bad, but they're certainly not like his All-Star numbers. To bring up the "led the league in" this stuff, well, that's just arrogance.

But the biggest reason he sat for a few games was that management was fed up with his errors - you know, the 14 errors he had in the first half of the year? Count 'em, FeLo - 14! He was costing the Reds games, and being in first place or first for the Wild Card around that time, management decided it'd had enough. I certainly had.
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