June 2, 2011GIANTS PAGEGIANTS VIDEO
CSNBayArea.com staff
Giants general manager Brian Sabean has had little to say about the injury to Buster Posey or the play that led to the catcher's season-ending injury. But he shared some strong opinions Thursday on his weekly radio show on KNBR.
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Here's a selection of Sabean's comments:
On the fact that Buster doesn't think he'll call Cousins back:
"Buster went through a tremendous experience. Maybe more so mentally than physically and he's going through a hell of a time physically with phantom pain, trying to get the pain under control.So there's a lot involved here and I don't blame him for not calling Cousins back. Why not be hard-nosed? If I never hear from Cousins again or he never plays a day in the big leagues I think we'll all be happy."
What he thinks now that some time has passed:
"After we step back and take the emotion out of it I think we're all in relative agreement that it was an avoidable situation, that's what's sad. I don't have anything against Scott Cousins, the player's mindset or even his relative explanation thereafter. The facts of the matter are it was not a blocking-the-plate situation. Buster Posey did not have the ball. The photo evidence shows Cousins, instead of taking a path to the plate, which is your job to try to score, he has his mind made up that he was going to have contact with the catcher. His right shoulder went into Buster's right shoulder which meant he veered left. If you don't call it malicious, it was unnecessary and therein lies why baseball has to look into this. These guys have to be protected."
On the play itself, and the concern about plate collisions:
"I want to make two points: One, Buster was told in spring training by (manager Bruce Bochy) not to block the plate. Two, in no way shape or form was he blocking the plate. He was just reacting to the throw and trying to get back and make a tag. Unfortunate, it's like one of those things that happens to your family. Until it happens to you and it hits home maybe it's not as real as what we're going through. I know that Boch talked to Joe Torre today and it least he's going to take some things under advisement and see what they can come up with. I don't know what the results will be."
How the rule should be interpreted:
"If the catcher is not in a position where he is blocking the plate, and the runner does have a path whether the catcher's got the ball or not, he's not able to plow into the catcher just for the sport of it."
On his long-term view of the situation:
"Cousins chose to be a hero, in my mind, and if that's his flash of fame, that's as good as it's going to get, pal. We'll have a long memory. Believe me, we've talked to (former catcher Mike) Matheny about how this game works. You can't be that out-and-out overly aggressive. I'll put it as politically as I can state it: There's no love lost and there shouldn't be."