Great stuff..
| An Interview With San Diego Padres Centerfielder Jim Edmonds |
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By Tim McKernan
December 17, 2007
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McKernan: The first question I got is – Is this a happy day or a sad day?
Edmonds: This is a bittersweet day. This is professionally, I guess, the right path for me to move forward with, and, personally, a very sad day to leave my friends and family back in St. Louis and the place I’ve grown accustomed to calling home. It’s gonna be a different situation for me.
McKernan: Why did you decide to go the Cardinals to say that you would waive your no-trade clause?
Edmonds: Well, it’s been an interesting couple of weeks or month. With the rumors of me maybe moving to right field or not getting enough playing time or being hurt or what have you and the young kids coming up, I felt that it was my job, and it would clear things up if my agent and myself approached the organization to clear some things up.
We were concerned about the right field situation, maybe moving to right field, or playing time, and when we called up, they gave me some good information about playing centerfield and would be able to be the centerfielder, but I didn’t get a good grip on playing everyday or getting enough playing time.
As things evolved, it looked like it was getting more uncomfortable for people. So, we came to the decision that the best thing for both parties was to make the decision now as opposed to getting into the season and not getting much playing time and being unhappy and bringing the team down. It just evolved into a trade to San Diego, kind of a weird situation.
McKernan: Now that it is all said and done, do you feel like you were treated fairly?
Edmonds: Yeah, I think I was treated fairly, and that’s been the biggest issue. The hardest thing to swallow is leaving my friends and family and people I’ve grown accustomed to being around with day-in and day-out, but the other side of it is the professional side and them allowing me to move on and maybe play everyday versus sitting and watching some games on the bench that I didn’t want to watch – allowing me to play and explore other opportunities and maybe even see if I can play another year after 2008 – so, you just never know in this game, but I was looking to be in the best position to take care of my family, like I always do, and it doesn’t always work out perfect for everybody, but we’re hoping this is going to work out for both sides.
McKernan: I gotta say I’m kind of surprised that you’re considering playing past 2008. I was under the impression that 2007 might be your last year and then you singed a two-year deal. What is the motive to continue to play – is it the 400 homerun mark that's driving you?
Edmonds: There’s no real big deal really pushing me. I just don’t want to be told when I have to stop. Probably 2008 is going to be my last year, but I feel pretty good and there’s a shortage of good centerfielders out there; I think that I will have a marketplace for maybe after this year if I can put up numbers and be healthy the whole year.
You just never know – I don’t want to sell myself short.
I always wanted to retire as a Cardinal, and it just didn’t work out that way, but my heart is always going to be there in St. Louis. Like I said, it’s been the best eight years of my life bar-none from the time I can remember until I was 37 years old now. So I don’t regret or have any bad memories or thoughts about it at all. It did nothing but make me a better person and a better baseball player.
McKernan: I’ll tell you this, man. Cardinal fans, across the board, are really upset about this. Big time upset about this and I think there’s a couple aspects of it. First off, people feel like this is the official sign that the team is going into 2008 in a rebuilding year.
And, then, secondly, people are really upset that you’re not going to have the opportunity to finish your career as a Cardinal. I’m telling you, man, I’ve lived in St. Louis all my life – I haven’t seen much similar to this in terms of people being upset/potential outrage over a guy leaving a team. I guess, in a sense, you have to consider that flattering. On the other side of it, I guess people don’t know that you were the one that played a role in initiating this trade.
Edmonds: Well, I’m completely flattered and all I ever tried to do was play as hard as I could. I realized the moment in I walked in the stadium, back in 2000, that the fans were passionate about the game. I felt the pressure not just to play for the team but for the fans and the city of St. Louis as soon as I got there.
So as far as that goes, that’s going to be a complete void I’m going to need to fill in my daily routine and the way that I play the game. But it’s business and it’s the toughest thing about business is you never know what’s going to happen the next day.
Like I said, all I wanted was the opportunity to play everyday, and I didn’t feel it was going to be a strong opportunity for me in St. Louis. Like I said, I thought the writing was on the wall, and I tried to initiate the conversation as far as filling me in, and I didn’t get the feedback that I really wanted even though they were completely honest with me. It just didn’t go the way I wanted it to go. So, I just said, “If you have the opportunity out there and you can find somebody that needs a centerfielder, I would love to play everyday.” And, basically they said that might be a great opportunity for you. I kind of put two and two together and decided if that does come along that maybe I’ll take a look at it.
Other than that, I’m sorry, I don’t know what to say…this has been a tough day. The last two days have been really tough. It’s a tough thing to decide. It’s a tough thing to leave what you call is home. The only thing I can say is that it is a job, and it’s only one more summer.
My situation in St. Louis will never change; I’ll always be there back and forth, just like I was going to do when I retire…have a good time…I’ll be back lots of times in the future.
InsideSTL :: McKernan's Corner
Quote:
Edmonds: I don’t know; it’s going to be a nervous moment. I just hope that – the only thing I can hope for – is that people appreciate what I tried to do there and, like I said, I wish I was still there and I wish I could still do it, but things just didn’t work out, and hopefully this is a better opportunity for both ends and I wish nothing but the best for the Cardinals. They treated me with a lot of respect over the years and if it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be the person that I am today and I’ve got to thank the organization and the fans for helping me grow up.
Edmonds: You know what? The only thing I can think about is the crowd reaction to each and every big game. It’s something that drives me every day that I’m driving to the ballpark, it’s something that I remember every day I’m going to work. It’s just how passionate the fans are, and the standing ovations and the people and the sea of red. I just… other than that, that one thing sticks out more than any one particular baseball moment to me… is just the noise of the crowd and to see the people cheer. That’s one thing that I’m definitely going to miss. And that probably, to me, is the biggest moment of every day and everything that I’ll ever remember about the stadium.
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Good luck in San Diego Jimmy!! Ugh!
Edmonds traded to San Diego
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