Zack Greinke Interview

[bylo tesi me]

Just thought this deserved discussion. Greinke talked to reporters today, and some stuff was interesting. He finds autograph-seeking fans Annoying, Reporters annoying because they ask dumb questions, But the good news is he hasn't found any of his new team mates very annoying so far.

 

I guess as long as he's pitching effectively, I don't really care if he is somewhat a loner. As someone with experience with SAD, I can somewhat understand where he is coming from, but still makes me a little nervous.

Got to like the fact that he'd be willing to give up his entire 27MM salary if he could just play Baseball and not have to put up with all the Fame and other nonsense.

 

http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/116683129.html

 

McCalvy was present also:

 

http://brewersbeat.mlblog...atting_with_greinke.html

[carniesandrubes]

People are annoying. I'm with Zack.

[Tailgat0r76]

McCalvy also has his own take on the interview

 

One of my favorite quotes was:

 

"As for picking his spots to talk to reporters, he said, “Probably 99% of

the time I do it like this is because every day I come to the park and

want to get focused on my start, and then random people come and waste

my time talking every day. It takes eight minutes to get a real question

out because they’re like buttering me up. Then they get to the question

and it’s a stupid question. So it’s a waste of 10 minutes, and in that

10-minute time I don’t get to do what I needed to do."

[bucksman4]

It's hard to read this story and fall in love with Zack -- the person. He seems to be a chronic complainer and very whiny. It's hard to be sympathetic to his quotes as he is in a profession that most of us could only dream to have.

His personality is not what I would ever want for the leader of a team I root for, however, if he pitches up to his potential, he will have many fans irrespective of the way he acts off of the field.

[Hofbraunhaus]

It's hard to read this story and fall in love with Zack -- the person. He seems to be a chronic complainer and very whiny. It's hard to be sympathetic to his quotes as he is in a profession that most of us could only dream to have.

I disagree. Maybe it's because I'm a bit of a pessimist but I love his honesty. I think most people are familiar with many of his past quotes and I'm looking forward to at least 2 years of his gems.

 

 

[Tedaldtada]

I like him.

[splitterpfj]

I absolutely love it, because I know this is just who he is. Zack's just a different guy than most, anyone who's read his quotes from his time in KC knows, this is just who Zack Greinke is.

 

Go Greinke...the best quote machine in MLB!

[Oxy]

I absolutely love it, because I know this is just who he is. Zack's just a different guy than most, anyone who's read his quotes from his time in KC knows, this is just who Zack Greinke is.

 

Go Greinke...the best quote machine in MLB!

Poor guy. The irony inherent in the situation of being the best quote machine in MLB because you hate to give quotes.

[TooLiveBrew]

It's hard to read this story and fall in love with Zack -- the person. He seems to be a chronic complainer and very whiny. It's hard to be sympathetic to his quotes as he is in a profession that most of us could only dream to have.

I disagree. Maybe it's because I'm a bit of a pessimist but I love his honesty. I think most people are familiar with many of his past quotes and I'm looking forward to at least 2 years of his gems.

 

I think it's nice to hear a guy be honest that he finds the tedious stuff tedious. I'm not a fan that needs to hear a player say how much he loves everything about my team & its fans. He doesn't come off as whiny at all imo. He's not asking anybody for any kind of sympathy, he's just being honest that sportswriters & fans can be annoying.

 

 

"There's more people to ignore in New York or Boston than there is

in Milwaukee," he said, "but I would still ignore them, probably."

 

I love this guy.

[ecjimg]

I just hope he doesnt walk away from a critical world series start because of the WS media hype!

[RockCoCougars]

It's hard to read this story and fall in love with Zack -- the person. He seems to be a chronic complainer and very whiny. It's hard to be sympathetic to his quotes as he is in a profession that most of us could only dream to have.

His personality is not what I would ever want for the leader of a team I root for, however, if he pitches up to his potential, he will have many fans irrespective of the way he acts off of the field.

I find his honesty quite refreshing. Instead of spouting the typical cliched responses, this guy actually says what is on probably 99% of the players minds. If he starts ripping the organization that could be a problem, but I have no issues with his take on the press and autograph hounds.

[owbc]

I tend to agree with him for the most part. Most sports press conferences consist of about 90% of the questions being cliche or just plain dumb. As for autographs, I wouldn't want to spend days of my life signing my name either. He seems to understand that dealing with it is part of the gig. Kudos to Greinke for speaking his mind. Fortunately, the Brewers beat writers appear to be above-average and Brewers fans are some of the best in baseball.

 

My only concern is that he's never been in a pennant race before, so if the Brewers are making a run in September/October, the media and fan pressure will grow exponentially. Conversely, the Brewers should have a fun, easy going clubhouse this year which should help ease any stress. He has won a Cy Young and been the focal point of the KC Royals for years, so I doubt there will be any major issues.

 

Overall I just like that he's playing because he loves baseball and not for the fame or money.

[bucksman4]

I am not faulting his candidness, but I am faulting his lack of a "filter" of any sorts. These anti-fan quotes will assuredly turn some people off.

Just because a person has a thought in their head, it doesn't necessarily mean they have to say it aloud. I don't think Zack understands and/or doesn't care about that.

[derflotr]

I didn't realize the Brewers traded for Holden Caulfield

[Flood Pants]

I think this is absolutely fascinating:

 

“To talk to people, I have to spend energy talking to them,” he said.

“If I expend my energy on talking to people and making friends, it

takes away from the energy I could focus on getting ready to pitch. I

try to avoid nonsense talk.

“It wears me out to do stuff like our meetings every day. If I

actually listen to the person talking, it’ll wear me out. So I kind of

go into a little daze. Then I’m still refreshed from it.”

 

It seems like just recently that social anxiety is being taken seriously in the sports world. In the past, I think he would have merely been labeled as "not mentally tough" or something like that. But that isn't true, his mind just works differently than most people. He may as well be honest with that right off the bat so his teammates and the media understand.

[milwaukeesportsfan]

The last thing I'm worried about is what comes out of Greinke's mouth. If you wanna know if this is going to turn off some members of Brewer nation, all you gotta do is look at the reaction of Royal nation when the trade went down. Not one Royals fan is happy he's gone because they didn't like his attitude.

[jwill535]

I for one I never read post game stories for the quotes, I couldnt care less about what players say about the game unless something odd happens(see Villy vs Pujols). Beyond that nothing of any note comes from players and and more often then not the manager. The only thing I think the media(all forms) is useful is trade rumors, player transactions and off season moves, beyond that I dont care to hear from the players day to day during the season.

 

I would also add that I hate people too, and totally understand what he is saying.

[chadomac]

I'm with Zack. People are annoying, athletes give the same boring canned interviews all the time, I find this all very refreshing. I don't think he hates being a pro athlete, he's just not going to pretend that it's all perfect. I'm sure autograph seekers are annoying a lot of the time. I look forward to a lot more refreshing honesty from him the next two years. As long as he pitches well, he can say anything he wants as long as he really believes it.

[BrewCrewForever]

Love it. This is just who Zack Greinke is. He is quirky and a little different. I can't wait to read his quotes throughout the season, it is going to be good copy for the likes of Haudricourt and McCalvy.

[hurricanecrush]

Got to like the fact that he'd be willing to give up his entire 27MM

salary if he could just play Baseball and not have to put up with all

the Fame and other nonsense.

 

I call BS since that is actually possible. I know some Land O' Lakes and American Legions teams that would take him. They're lucky to get 30 fans at their games. If he gives me a million, I'll be happy to set him up.

[chadomac]

Got to like the fact that he'd be willing to give up his entire 27MM

salary if he could just play Baseball and not have to put up with all

the Fame and other nonsense.

 

I call BS since that is actually possible. I know some Land O' Lakes and American Legions teams that would take him. They're lucky to get 30 fans at their games. If he gives me a million, I'll be happy to set him up.

I don't think it'd be very fun for him to "compete" in a league like that where his ERA is 0 and he wins every single game.

[Funketown]

I don't understand the uproar. Some people hate fame. Greinke seems to be one of them. It's not like he said he enjoys kicking children and running over puppies.

 

The guy speaks his mind. I'm sure a lot of players feel this way.

[ThePurpleStorm]

I don't think people are apprehensive about him not like reporters or fame or the fans or whatever... at least for me, it's the fact that just 5 years ago he was apparently within a few straws of quitting because of his social anxiety. The article isn't exactly encouraging. Being a #1 pitcher in the MLB for a playoff team isn't exactly cut up for people who are uncomfortable with attention or being around others. He does come across as a bit whiney and anti-social... that's his business. Nobody is going to tell him how to live his life.. but I am a bit nervous that he's not going to be 100% mentally there all the time. Hopefully I'm wrong.

[TooLiveBrew]

In 2009 he was even less removed from considering quitting baseball, and he won the AL Cy Young. This is a non-issue imo.

[Oxy]

I don't think people are apprehensive about him not like reporters or fame or the fans or whatever... at least for me, it's the fact that just 5 years ago he was apparently within a few straws of quitting because of his social anxiety. The article isn't exactly encouraging. Being a #1 pitcher in the MLB for a playoff team isn't exactly cut up for people who are uncomfortable with attention or being around others. He does come across as a bit whiney and anti-social... that's his business. Nobody is going to tell him how to live his life.. but I am a bit nervous that he's not going to be 100% mentally there all the time. Hopefully I'm wrong.

I don't think it is going to be an issue. From all accounts, this guy was born to pitch and compete at the highest level. The pitching mound is where he was meant to be, and he knows it. He puts up with all the other crap that goes along with being a professional athlete BECAUSE he gets to pitch. He doesn't do it for the money. He doesn't do it for the fame or to be a star. He does it because he loves to pitch and strike guys out. His off days might be pretty boring, but as long as the team is winning I don't think that will be an issue either.