TAMPA – A group of professional athletes who take a serious problem seriously.
Seems elementary enough, right? In the case of the Yankees and Domingo German, however, it felt shocking. We’re not used to teammates blaming each other, as several Yankees now have against German, the pitcher who is trying to return after an 81-game suspension for violating Major League Baseball’s domestic violence protocols.
Many of you don’t like this, based on reader emails. Like it or not, it’s real, and it’s not over yet.
As he tries to rehabilitate his baseball career, German will be lagging behind in confidence – “skating on thin ice,” as Luke Voit put it on Wednesday – with the people he needs most.
German took his next step on Wednesday by speaking at a Zoom press conference, and the 28-year-old completed the assignment smoothly. Through an interpreter, the Dominican Republic resident took responsibility for his actions on September 16, 2019, acknowledging that he “ needs to show that I can certainly be a better person and that my actions can speak for myself. ”
That session lasted more than 30 minutes and ended at around 1:40 PM. Less than an hour later, Voit uttered his new German quote of the day, saying, “We’ve got his back, but he’s skating on thin ice and he’s got to live his life together.” For the record, Voit added: it messed up. Many guys now look at him differently, but I believe in a second chance, and that man deserves a second chance. “
Giancarlo Stanton, more diplomatic but still his point, added: “In the clubhouse we all have difficult things, some much worse than others. But our job is to provide appropriate support when we get the chance. “
Throw in the words of Zack Britton from last week – “Sometimes you don’t get control over who your teammates are and that’s the situation” – and you have a clear picture that the German is dealing with a tough climb.
But not an impossible one. Voit and Stanton both voiced their criticisms with words of support, and on Wednesday, German, who apologized to his teammates on Tuesday, praised Britton for giving “really good advice on how I can improve” and expressed understanding for Britton’s sharp rhetoric.
“He’s done enough to deserve the chance to be here and be part of this team,” manager Aaron Boone said of German. “Now it is proof in everyday life that he leads.
We generally do not hear such rigor from teammates when a player returns from a prolonged suspension, be it domestic violence or illegal performance enhancers. When the Mets re-contracted Jose Reyes in 2016, after Reyes pulled a 52-game suspension for a domestic violence penalty while with the Rockies, team captain David Wright called Reyes’ actions “awful, awful,” yet completely. unconditionally supported. the decision. He loved the sinner and hated sin, the standard game in these situations.
When the Astros traded for Roberto Osuna of Blue Jays in 2018, amid Osuna’s 75-game suspension from domestic violence, veteran Houston pitcher Justin Verlander, looking unemotional, told reporters, “It’s a tough situation. I think the thing we need to remember here is that the details haven’t come to light. We don’t know the whole story. “
To reiterate a recent point, the Yankees know most, if not all, the story of Germany. They experienced it in real time. That it happened a few weeks prior to the post-season, that it certainly hurt the team’s chances of surviving the Astros in the American League (they didn’t) wouldn’t matter in the big picture, but still the German forced to say in his press conference: “When my team needed me the most in 2019, before we started the playoffs, I wasn’t there for them. And for that I ask for your forgiveness. “
The Yankees players seem willing to forgive, but not forget. To try to make it work without pressing the reset button.
They take it seriously. Good for them. If they can use this seriousness to help German get his life back on track and restore his professional viability? Even better.