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Goose Gossage is not happy with the way some modern MLB players behave. (Anthony Gruppuso/USA Today Sports)
Hall of Fame reliever Goose Gossage made headlines Thursday after an interview with ESPN in which he went on a 10-minute, expletive-laden tirade. He ripped several current players as well as those who run the league.
Part of the new-school look to baseball involves flashiness. Antics like bat-flips, admiring home runs and showing up pitchers have become more accepted now than they ever were during Gossage’s playing days. This apparently does not sit well with him, as he specifically called out Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista for repeatedly showboating.
“Bautista is a [expletive] disgrace to the game,” Gossage said. “He’s embarrassing to all the Latin players, whoever played before him. Throwing his bat and acting like a [expletive] fool, like all those guys in Toronto. [Yoenis] Cespedes, same thing.”
When informed of Gossage’s strong words toward him, Bautista took the high road and did not return fire.
“He’s a great ambassador for the game,” Bautista said. “I don’t agree with him. I’m disappointed that he made those comments, but I’m not going to get into it with him. I would never say anything about him, no matter what he said about me. I have too much good stuff to worry about his comments. Today is my first game [of spring training], getting ready for a new season; hopefully, we will whoop some more ass.”
Cespedes responded to Gossage’s comments as well, saying through an interpreter: “Whenever a pitcher strikes someone out, they get to celebrate, too, and have their moment and revel in it. Why can’t the batters get a chance to enjoy their success, too?”
Gossage did not stop there, however. He went on to rip the MLB from top to bottom, taking issue with those who run the league.
“It is a joke,” Gossage said. “The game is becoming a freaking joke because of the nerds who are running it.
“I’ll tell you what has happened, these guys played rotisserie baseball at Harvard or wherever the [expletive] they went, and they thought they figured the [expletive] game out. They don’t know [expletive].”
The age-old conflict of old school vs. new school has been brought to light once again. Gossage explained why he feels some of the recent rule changes in the MLB are damaging the game of baseball.
“You can’t slide into second base. You can’t take out the [expletive] catcher because [Buster] Posey was in the wrong position and they are going to change all the rules,” Gossage said. “You can’t pitch inside anymore. I’d like to knock some of these [expletive] on their ass and see how they would do against pitchers in the old days.”
Gossage also took issue with the current treatment of steroid users, as many former players from his era have. He pointed to Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun as an example of someone he felt would not have survived in the league years ago.
“Ryan Braun is a [expletive] steroid user. He gets a standing ovation on Opening Day in Milwaukee,” Gossage said. “How do you explain that to your kid after throwing people under the bus and lying through his [expletive] teeth? They don’t have anyone passing the [expletive] torch to these people. If I had acted like that, you don’t go in that [expletive] dugout. There are going to be 20 [expletive] guys waiting for you.”
