Bringing the Energy!

Ryan Freel was supposed to be a sparkplug for this team when he was acquired from the Reds in the offseason. But it looks like he's not crazy about his role...even as the team wins early in the season.

"I know it's somewhat early, but I think my role is what you see right now. That's what they want to do, play those [other] guys. I think they're pretty clear about that....Where we go, I don't know."

Wow! That's what I call energy! That's what I call spunk!

See, just because a guy hustles and plays all out on the field doesn't mean he's actually a good guy, a team player, a nice guy to have around the clubhouse. Freel is a "me first" kind of player. And he's the worst type of "me first" kind of player; the kind who is not a very good player to begin with.

I suppose that playing in Cincinnati all those years on last place teams will inflate the self-worth of a career 90 OPS + player(and declining) but he is not actually very valuable to anyone these days except as a bench player, a spot starter, a guy who fills in when a better player is hurt. Instead, he thinks he was the National League's answer to Chone Figgins. That's simply not the case.

Quite frankly, you have to wonder if Robert Andino makes him quite expendable at this point. Would the team be any worse off if they dumped Freel and promoted Lou Montanez? I think not.