03-22-2008, 03:55 PM
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#1 (permalink)
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Pure Greatness
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Posts: 2,248
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Trade Talks Starting To Wear On Roberts
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He was supposed to have been somewhere in Arizona today, wearing a Chicago Cubs jersey, playing second base and batting leadoff for a team with legitimate World Series aspirations.
Instead, Brian Roberts was at Roger Dean Stadium, wearing an Orioles jersey and wondering about his future with the only organization he has ever known. Ten days before Opening Day, the uncertainty is the last thing Roberts expected or wanted.
'At some point in your career, your name is going to be thrown out there in trades and it's going to create some uncertainty,' Roberts said before the Orioles' 7-4 loss today to the St. Louis Cardinals . 'But, no, I didn't expect this to go all the way through spring training . It's not something that I'd want to go through every year, that's for sure.'
The Orioles and Cubs first started discussing a trade involving the two-time All-Star in December. It was expected to be the final of three trades in the Orioles' big offseason rebuilding project, masterminded by president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail. Miguel Tejada went first and Erik Bedard went next, setting the stage for Roberts' exit.
However, the Orioles and Cubs have been negotiating for more than three months and still haven't reached a deal. The talk around baseball and among the scouts who have been at Orioles games the past couple of days is that one could be imminent, but that's been said since spring training began.
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Nearly every day, Roberts is approached by an opposing player and asked about the potential trade. Umpires and fans have also asked Roberts regularly about his future, but those inquiries are far more tolerable than the daily questions from the media. Roberts has visibly grown tired of them, and it's becoming harder and harder for him to remain upbeat and accommodating. 'When you're talking about your life circumstances, yeah, it's tough not to think about it,' said Roberts, who went 0-for-4 today and hit into two double plays, his spring average dropping to .293. 'I'm trying to block it out the best I can. But that's tough when everybody wants to talk about it. It's frustrating at times. And times, you say, 'It's out of my control.' Most of the time, that's how I look at it. I'm here for a reason right now and I'll make the best of every day, but there comes a time where you'd like to know what's going on.'
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Everyone is entitled to be stupid, but some abuse the privilege.
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Trade Talks Starting To Wear On Roberts
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