Morning sports update: Pablo Sandoval still thinks highly of Red Sox despite being ‘mocked many times’ prior to release
"And, of course, lots of comments were made."
The Red Sox lost to the Angels on Sunday, 5-4. Boston now trails the final American League wildcard spot by 7.5 games.
The Patriots continue building for the season in training camp, with two days scheduled later this week (Aug. 14-15) for joint practices with the Titans.
Pablo Sandoval’s thoughts on his failed time in Boston: In late 2014, Pablo Sandoval signed a five-year, $90 million deal with the Red Sox after helping the Giants win a third World Series in five years with a dominant postseason.
Unfortunately, Sandoval’s time in Boston never came anywhere near the high notes of his San Francisco days. He played just 161 games for the Red Sox over three injury-plagued seasons, batting .237 before being released midseason in 2017.
Since then, Sandoval has returned to the Giants, regaining some of his past form. He recently spoke about his difficult period with the Red Sox in an interview with ESPN’s Marly Rivera.
“Being let go by the Red Sox hurt, especially because I was coming back from an injury and going through so many things in my life,” Sandoval told Rivera.
“Being in Boston was a learning experience,” Sandoval explained. “The truth is that it was a great organization, and I have nothing against [the Red Sox]. And the fans, they are demanding, they want to see their players contribute. They want to see the best of them. And I learned from that.”
Still, Sandoval acknowledged that he heard the steady stream of commenting regarding his weight while in Boston, learning to harness the discussion for motivational use.
“And, of course, lots of comments were made. I was mocked many times for my weight, but I learned to use all that as inspiration and as a learning experience,” Sandoval noted.
The 33-year-old is currently .269 with 14 home runs in 107 games in 2019 so far.
Trivia: In 2016, Pablo Sandoval played just three games for the Red Sox before shoulder surgery ended his season. In his place, Boston primarily utilized Travis Shaw at third base (playing 105 games). A second player notched 44 appearances at third for the Red Sox that season. Who was this backup third baseman for the 2016 Red Sox?
(Answer at the bottom).
Hint: He was an All-Star who hit 36 home runs while playing second base for another American League East team in 2009. For his efforts that season, he was named AL Comeback Player of the Year.
More from Boston.com:
- What Tom Brady had to say about selling his house
- Patriots to add free and reduced-priced parking lots, but there’s a catch
- Lance Armstrong says he dropped Mike Pence on Nantucket bike trail
- David Price said his wrist started ‘feeling a lot better’
- Carles Gil converts late penalty kick, Revs tie Seattle Sounders 3-3
- Simone Biles takes gymnastics to a new level. Again.
- USA Basketball plays first scrimmage in advance of World Cup
The search for Josh Gordon
: While the Patriots aren’t allowed to have any official contact with suspended wide receiver Josh Gordon, the rule doesn’t preclude reporters from trying to speak with him. Boston Globe Patriots writer Ben Volin recently went to Florida to try and speak with the 28-year-old Gordon. [The Boston Globe]
Pro Bowl receiver endorses Patriots player: Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen is first cousins with Maurice Harris, a 6-foot-3 receiver currently trying to make the Patriots’ roster. Allen thinks Harris could thrive in New England since the team’s game plan is “always second to none.”
“He has unbelievable hands,” Allen told Kevin Duffy of the Boston Herald. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen him drop a pass. Just his ability to track the ball, his hand-eye coordination… If you throw it up, he’s going to get it.” [The Boston Herald]
Patriots players are rooting for Josh Gordon on and off the field: While Patriots players are hoping to get wide receiver Josh Gordon back from suspension given his ability to make plays on the field, his teammates are more supportive of his ongoing battle with substance abuse away from football.
“I was definitely close to him. I just hope he gets himself right,” fellow New England wide receiver Phillip Dorsett told ESPN’s Mike Reiss. “That’s my main concern — just him as a human being. I don’t really care about the football thing. I just want to see him be healthy in his mind, his body, and spirit.” [ESPN]
In case you missed it: Team USA highlights featured strong performances from a few Celtics players in a scrimmage over the weekend.
On this day: In 1969, Celtics ownership changed hands for the fifth time in just over five years when Trans-National Communications bought the team from P. Ballantine & Sons Brewing Co. for a then-NBA record price of $6 million, breaking the previous record set by Jack Kent Cooke’s purchase of the Lakers for $5.175 million in 1965.
“We have no intention of moving the Celtics to another city,” declared Trans-National president E. E. (Woody) Erdman in the Boston Globe story on the sale.
Whether Erdman actually meant that or not, it became apparent that Trans-National viewed the Celtics — a flagship NBA franchise — as an interchangeable piece in the business that would be more profitable in a New York setting.
“Obviously, when Erdman purchased the Celtics, he had moving to Long Island on his mind,” wrote Globe sports writer Will McDonough in 1970. “There’s a big arena going up in that area, and it could be a gold mine for a regular tenant.”
The newly built Nassau Coliseum in Long Island was, as McDonough foresaw, Erdman’s plannd destination for the Celtics.
“I’m a New Yorker, and it’s natural for me to want my teams to play in New York,” Erdman told Newsday in 1970. “I want my teams to play in our Coliseum.”
Yet Erdman and Trans-National had bigger problems. Other investments by the company, including the $4.5 million purchase of the Oakland Seals (an expansion NHL team), were causing Trans-National to lose money.
Longtime Celtics general manager Red Auerbach recognized the financial disaster caused by the new ownership.
“Now he was the absolute worst,” Auerbach said of Erdman in his co-written autobiography. “A bunch of his other investments went bad and he was stealing money from the team. He insisted that all gate receipts be sent directly to him in New York. He said he would pay all the bills from there. He didn’t want our accounting office involved at all.”
“Except he never paid the bills,” Auerbach continued. “One time I had to write a check from my own account for three thousand dollars because the phone company was about to turn all our phones off.”
Luckily for Boston and the Celtics organization, Trans-National’s debt consumed the company before it could ever move the team to Long Island. In 1972, Trans-National filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and Celtic ownership changed hands once again.
Daily highlight: Terence Moore recovered an onside kick for the Albany Empire in Arena Bowl 32. Albany eventually won the game, 45-27.
UNBELIEVABLE PLAY!
Albany recovers the onside kick 😮 #ArenaBowl32 pic.twitter.com/K3UoIRuCVn
— ESPN (@espn) August 12, 2019
Trivia answer: Aaron Hill
