You know something, I’m a big Romero fan.
He’s gritty, tough, passionate, and earned the benefit of the doubt. But lately he’s been both out pitched by Happ, and pitched out of some ball games by his mistakes.
I’m not attacking him. It’s not personal—and I think a lot of fans think it is when I criticize his play. Fact is, if it was personal, I’d defend him because I know he’s going through, and has gone through, a hell of a lot.
Failure at the top is a rough thing to bear and Ricky’s taken it like a champ. But part of being unbiased is to call it like I see it. Just like last year when I said Romero should have some time in the minors, I say it now.
Do I believe Ricky has a higher ceiling than Happ? Yes, I do. I think Ricky has proven that. But I also believe that Ricky is never going to be the same after last season and may need more than just this spring to figure out how to get back to that high ceiling of his.
I think the game has changed for him, and he’ll need some time to rediscover who he is when he takes the mound. Continued failure in the bigs wont let him have that chance reinvent himself. Or worse, it will teach him he’s a failure— and he is anything but.
What’s important to understand here is we all go through a hard patch. Some of us do it in the low levels and no one really notices besides us because we’re no one worth noticing. Others do it at the top and everyone gets a chance to interject their thoughts on the matter until you could just about go crazy from opinion overload. There is nothing wrong with struggling, but, their is a cost to it in this game, especially when it’s chronic.
There are some players to whom you’d like to say, “It’s okay, fail as much as you want, we love you and we believe you’ll figure it out”. I think Romero is one of those players. Unfortunately, that’s not how this game works. Ricky knows this, which is what makes each subsequent bad outing that much harder. There is only so much grace, even for the best players.
But if the grace did run out, I don’t think it would be that bad of a thing. In fact, it might be for the best.
Imagine knowing that before you took the mound if you failed again you were that much closer to making all the social fears swirling around you come true. Imagine that each bad pitch you threw inched you ever closer to self destruction. Imagine people were expecting you to fail. Imagine doubting your ability to do something you’ve done your whole life, in front of people that don’t care about what you’ve done your whole life but only what you’ve failed to do today… Imagine being afraid that it will all go wrong, then being told not to think about it all going wrong because that too is wrong.
I get it. I get all of it. I get the fanfare for a great player. I get the cold facts that work against him. I get the value of the track record and the weight of looming doubt. I’ve been there. I know.
It’s complex and it’s black and white. But most of all, it’s not fun. It’s baseball without any of it’s pleasures.
I think if you get Ricky out of that place, not the big leagues, per say, but the place he’s currently in in time and space, the zone of doubt, looming fears, and heating expectations, and you’ll see him really start to turn things around.
Ricky is a much better pitcher that his recent results have shown. But, how do you get him back to that? Throw him out there and tell him not to do what he’s been doing, and not to think about it even though he’s surrounded by people who can’t stop churning up that which he’d like to move past?
Romero is a gritty, tough, passionate player. But right now, he just isn’t a very good one.
Maybe instead of asking him to deny it, avoid it, or block it out, he should be put in a place where he can accept it and then deal with it accordingly for a real chance to move past it?
Here are today’s shots.
