Flanagan: Damon reveals Sam Malone lifestyle in new book

[tk13]

http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/sports/11329591.htm

‘Idiot' Damon is swinging away in book

JEFFREY FLANAGAN


Remember that innocent, lovable image that Johnny Damon once portrayed as he came up through the Royals system?

Say bye-bye to that.

Damon probably torpedoed that for good now that his long-awaited book Idiot: Beating The Curse and Enjoying the Game of Life has landed in the bookstores.

Damon reveals himself as the stereotypical self-indulgent, sex-crazed ballplayer who used women and dumped his wife after finally making it to the big time. Damon writes that he made the decision to divorce his high school sweetheart, Angie Vannice, at the start of the 2002 season. The couple have 5-year-old twins.

After telling her to leave their home near Boston and go back to Orlando, Damon said, Vannice came back against his wishes. At that point, Damon writes, he told her, “ ‘There's no reason for you to be here' … Just to push her buttons I added, ‘I was with three more girls while you were gone.' ”

After Vannice left for good, Damon said he really started to have some fun.

“If you're good-looking and a ballplayer, girls want a piece of you,” he wrote. “For the rest of the (2002) season, I met some women, some good, some bad. I had some one-nighters that I had never gotten to experience before. It was fun. I ended up having to carry around a separate cell phone for the women to call me. I didn't want them to have my main number because my phone would have been ringing off the hook and it just got tiring.”

Damon said he never had problems finding women once he left Vannice.

“After I broke it off with one woman, she told me, ‘I don't mind if you see other girls, too,' ” Damon wrote. “Most women weren't so flexible. I remember one who was clearly a one-night stand who'd call me up and tell me she'd told all her friends we were dating …

“One (other) time, I was propositioned by two girls at once, but I passed. Two girls might be able to handcuff me and kill me. Mostly, they just want more of your life than you can give them. I'm sure some of them wanted to get pregnant.”

***

So what does Vannice think of the book? Naturally, she's embarrassed by the book's details.

“I have never said or done anything to promote this,” she told the Boston Herald. “I tried to make things as smooth as possible for the kids' sake.”

She blames the divorce on Damon's new wife, Michelle Mangan, whom she calls a “home-wrecker.”

“In baseball, as the wife, you are always the last to know,” Vannice said. “I found pictures of him and her together. He told me at the time we were breaking up that there were three (other women) and he couldn't decide between the three of them….

“I had 15 years with the guy. Then all of a sudden, I'm the scum of the earth. I'm kicked to the curb.”

Damon writes that his ex-wife just didn't understand.

“I wanted to live, have fun, not pick out furniture,” he wrote.

***

Brandon Rush, younger brother of Kareem and JaRon, has been chosen to replace Gerald Green on the 10-man U.S. Junior National Select Team that will face an under-19 World Select team in the Nike Hoop Summit on Saturday in Memphis.

Green, an Oklahoma State signee, withdrew because of a back injury.

Rush, the only member of the team yet to sign with a college, is expected to visit Oklahoma within the next week.

[mcan]

He's a dick... If he wanted to screw around so much, then you don't get married. The two cell phone thing is VERY common according to Canseco. He basically said that he only knew of ONE baseball player to never cheat. I can't remember who he said though, but he named him. Then he said the only TOP player in the game that he figured NOT to be on any juice was Derek Jeter.

[mikey23545]

What a fine, upstanding young man.

[Taco John]

I swear I was in the same fraternity with this guy...

[teedubya]

I tell you, its Steinbrenners fault...somehow.

[alpha_omega]

“I wanted to live, have fun, not pick out furniture,” he wrote.


Probably should have thought of that before he got married in the first place! What a jerk!

[NaptownChief]

Certainly making himself look like a moron but in reality he is just further proving why you should never get married young and why you usually should experience life before settling down....Those that marry the high school sweetheart never get a chance to see what it was all about and will usually get that itch. If you take a few years to experience this type of lifestyle you get it out of your system and realize that it isn't that big of a deal.

[Eleazar]

Doesn't seem like there is anything in life he is loyal to, other than #1

[dirk digler]

What a piece of shit. The good guy image he protrayed with the Royals is a joke.

[kc rush]

What a loser. I was never big on him when he was a Royal, liked him less when he was gone, I thought he was a loser when he started the hair and beard thing, now I have no respect for him.

I'm sure he's crying over that right now.

[Amnorix]

Scum. He's gone from local favorite / good guy to pond scum around here. What a stupid way to completely wreck your image.

I'd be surprised to see him on any local advertising going forward. He's really damaged his rep.

[dirk digler]

Scum. He's gone from local favorite / good guy to pond scum around here. What a stupid way to completely wreck your image.

I'd be surprised to see him on any local advertising going forward. He's really damaged his rep.

What do Bostonians think of him?

I can't believe he would write shit like that in his own book. What a commatard.

[jspchief]

I like the guy. Always have and always will.


He only admits in his book what a large majority of baseball players do. So he got a divorce? I guess it would have been better to just cheat on his wife instead. A lot of people make mistakes when they marry someone, including a lot of people on this BB. It's naive to think it's a character flaw.

The guy is one of the few characters left in proffessional sports.

[Deberg_1990]

Certainly making himself look like a moron but in reality he is just further proving why you should never get married young and why you usually should experience life before settling down....Those that marry the high school sweetheart never get a chance to see what it was all about and will usually get that itch. If you take a few years to experience this type of lifestyle you get it out of your system and realize that it isn't that big of a deal.

Well said, Thats why I didnt get married until I was 30! Im a little surprised he wanted to write so much negative personal information about himself?? Jim Rome will be all over this one.

[Brock]

An entitled pro athlete acting like an entitled pro athlete? SHOCKING.

[the Talking Can]

I'm sure his kids are proud...

[beavis]

This makes me ill. I think I'll go home and burn my autographed Damon jersey. What an ass.

[HemiEd]

He is a jackass just like others that leave the Royals! There was that term again: "kicked to the curb."

[Iowanian]

Let me get this strait........He Turned down...2 chics....at the same time? Might as well sew Denverchief's avatar on his uni right now.

Sounds like a class A prick. The vows were "until death do we part"...not "Until I feel like sinking my capgun in another holster"

[ChiTown]

That long-haired midget needs a c u n t punch. What a smoke...............

[Chiefs Pantalones]

"...dumped his wife after finally making it to the big time."

Lance Armstrong did the same thing. Damon, Lance, etc, the majority of celebs are scumb.

[Chiefs Pantalones]

Him growing out his hair, accompanied by this, is Damon's way of getting PR. What a couple of bad choices: Make your hair look terrible, and admit to being a lowlife loser who cheats on his wife. I'm not surprised though, that he's a scum.

[StcChief]

Hope gets AIDS/Herpes and dies

[teedubya]

Mullets get all the chicks.

[DaneMcCloud]

Wow, I'm really surprised at the responses here. First off, he married too young. Secondly, no one, not even he knew that he would be a major league player with any success or money, let alone MLB stud who signed a huge contract with the Boston Red Sox! Thirdly, after experiencing his new found fame and wealth, the guy was being hit on by tons of hot chicks, all over the country! He's living the life of a rock star! He gets divorced, writes an honest book about those times, and you guys are bagging on him? I guarantee that 90% of you guys would have done the same exact thing!

Do you guys hate actors that divorce their wives or husbands after becoming famous? Musicians? How about doctors?

Dane
~Very surprised at these reactions

[Brock]

I guarantee that 90% of you guys would have done the same exact thing!

90% of the guys who don't take marriage vows and the role of fatherhood seriously would have.

[Rain Man]

Certainly making himself look like a moron but in reality he is just further proving why you should never get married young and why you usually should experience life before settling down....Those that marry the high school sweetheart never get a chance to see what it was all about and will usually get that itch. If you take a few years to experience this type of lifestyle you get it out of your system and realize that it isn't that big of a deal.


I agree. The tough thing is that he picked out the best fish in his small pond and then got exposed to the ocean. That's a lot of temptation to avoid.

[jspchief]

90% of the guys who don't take marriage vows and the role of fatherhood seriously would have.

So what's the opinion on anyone else that gets married, has kids, then gets divorced? Is everyone that does that a scumbag? Or just the ones that are stud baseball players that left the Royals?

Sounds to me like a bunch of jaded royals fans that need to get laid more often.

I can only wonder how many of these soapboxes would crumble with hypocrisy given similar temptation....

[kc rush]

Wow, I'm really surprised at the responses here. First off, he married too young. Secondly, no one, not even he knew that he would be a major league player with any success or money, let alone MLB stud who signed a huge contract with the Boston Red Sox! Thirdly, after experiencing his new found fame and wealth, the guy was being hit on by tons of hot chicks, all over the country! He's living the life of a rock star! He gets divorced, writes an honest book about those times, and you guys are bagging on him? I guarantee that 90% of you guys would have done the same exact thing!

Do you guys hate actors that divorce their wives or husbands after becoming famous? Musicians? How about doctors?

Dane
~Very surprised at these reactions


People get divorced, fact of life, I'm not judging him on that. I'm bagging on him bragging about cheating on his wife then rubbing his exploits in her face.

If the guy wants to live the high life, get the divorce, then have fun.

[Chiefs Pantalones]

People get divorced, fact of life, I'm not judging him on that. I'm bagging on him bragging about cheating on his wife then rubbing his exploits in her face.

If the guy wants to live the high life, get the divorce, then have fun.

Agreed. I'm surprised that these celebs (the ones that choose to participate in this) get married. They end up cheating anyway. They need to take the time and think if marriage is what they really want to do; if they really want to settle down then. Some don't, then BAM...you get another Kobe.

[Mark M]

People get divorced, fact of life, I'm not judging him on that. I'm bagging on him bragging about cheating on his wife then rubbing his exploits in her face.


That's the problem I have with this. He didn't even have the decency to be faithful to his wife, and then writes about it like it's some kind of joke. ANYONE who does that -- famous or not -- is freaking pathetic, IMHO.

He had a woman who married him before he was anyone, and is going to trade that for women who just love his fame and money. I guess if that's what he wants, that's what he gets.

MM
~~:shrug:

[Phobia]

Wow, I'm really surprised at the responses here. First off, he married too young. Secondly, no one, not even he knew that he would be a major league player with any success or money, let alone MLB stud who signed a huge contract with the Boston Red Sox! Thirdly, after experiencing his new found fame and wealth, the guy was being hit on by tons of hot chicks, all over the country! He's living the life of a rock star! He gets divorced, writes an honest book about those times, and you guys are bagging on him? I guarantee that 90% of you guys would have done the same exact thing!

Do you guys hate actors that divorce their wives or husbands after becoming famous? Musicians? How about doctors?

Dane
~Very surprised at these reactions

I'm surprised, too. At least he divorced the lady. The golden boy of the NBA cheated for many years and continued to be married to his wife even though it wasn't a closely guarded secret....

Of course, Jordan didn't write a book about it....

I think the tell-all book was a poor decision. It means he doesn't have any respect for his ex-wife - which is fine, but it also means he doesn't have any respect for his children. Which isn't fine.

[ChiTown]

I think the tell-all book was a poor decision. It means he doesn't have any respect for his ex-wife - which is fine, but it also means he doesn't have any respect for his children. Which isn't fine.


ding! ding! ding! we have a winna!

[Phobia]

That's the problem I have with this. He didn't even have the decency to be faithful to his wife, and then writes about it like it's some kind of joke. ANYONE who does that -- famous or not -- is freaking pathetic, IMHO.

He had a woman who married him before he was anyone, and is going to trade that for women who just love his fame and money. I guess if that's what he wants, that's what he gets.

He'll soon find the seriousness of his mistake.

[Brock]

So what's the opinion on anyone else that gets married, has kids, then gets divorced? Is everyone that does that a scumbag?

Everyone that does it because he has a bunch of women crawling all over him is. I realize there are perfectly valid reasons to leave your wife and children. A couple, anyway.

[Spicy McHaggis]

I could really give a rip about his personal life. I like Damon but this just seems to be the pro baseball equivilent of "Look at My Vegas Picture With The Hookers That I Don't Remember!" Johnny is coming off pretty insecure here.

[dave0320]

Another dead beat dad!

[DaneMcCloud]

Dead beat dad? I didn't see anywhere that he's refused or isn't providing child support! That's just a stupid, crazy response!

For those of you who don't get it, suddenly becoming rich and famous while being married is extremely difficult for anyone, let alone Johnny Damon. Add in the fact that we have no idea what type of marriage they had to begin with, or whether or not she's a bitch on wheels. And no one said that he's a bad father, not even the ex-wife.

Dane
~Still shocked

[tk13]

I feel really bad for the kids. I'd be embarrassed if my dad was out there saying stuff like this... not to mention probably feeling like a mistake that my dad didn't really want... hard telling though without reading the whole book. That's what these excerpts sound like though.

[Brock]

Dead beat dad? I didn't see anywhere that he's refused or isn't providing child support! That's just a stupid, crazy response!

For those of you who don't get it, suddenly becoming rich and famous while being married is extremely difficult for anyone, let alone Johnny Damon. Add in the fact that we have no idea what type of marriage they had to begin with, or whether or not she's a bitch on wheels. And no one said that he's a bad father, not even the ex-wife.

Dane
~Still shocked

Stupid and crazy is what I call equating fatherhood with a child support check. As for the rest of your inane, "fame is tough" garbage, Mr. Damon can find sympathy in the dictionary, right between shit and syphilis.

[Chiefs Pantalones]

probably feeling like a mistake that my dad didn't really want...

Yeah, it would've been so hard to avoid. Give me a break. The dude is a piece of bronco.

I feel sorry for both, the kids and the wife. They both love(d) him, obviously.

[Deberg_1990]

Heres his recent arrest video for DUI......Why cant these rich dudes just get an UBER or a personal driver?



<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/SrZuLECVbss" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[cabletech94]

That was actually kind of painful to watch the whole thing.

On a side note, look at all the old posters that don’t frequent here any longer.

On another side note, Johnny’s girl has some big assed tittys.

[Chiefspants]

On a side note, look at all the old posters that don’t frequent here any longer.
.


Yeah, that was a big gut punch.

As a young Royals (Damon/Dye/Beltran/Sweeney) fan (in 2005), I'm glad I didn't know about this book until now. Yikes.

[EPodolak]

Pretty embarrassing, both of them. In that video he sounds like a 20 year old goofball.

[Kman34]

"Brandon Rush, younger brother of Kareem and JaRon, has been chosen to replace Gerald Green on the 10-man U.S. Junior National Select Team that will face an under-19 World Select team in the Nike Hoop Summit on Saturday in Memphis.

Green, an Oklahoma State signee, withdrew because of a back injury."

Holy shit.. I didn't know Brandon Green was off the under 19 team..

[srvy]

We're good people. :D
Would have been funny if the cop had said no you're not I read your book.

[tk13]

This is my thread so I guess that's great and all, but I don't get why people start bumping 15 year old threads to post something that is hardly related to the topic.

[Bugeater]

This is my thread so I guess that's great and all, but I don't get why people start bumping 15 year old threads to post something that is hardly related to the topic.Well...when you can't start new threads....

[tk13]

Well...when you can't start new threads....

Oh, well that makes sense then. LMAO I spent a few minutes trying to figure out what this thread had to do with anything. Please, continue.

[Pasta Little Brioni]

Ban him from bumping threads to. Romper Dat ass.

[Red Dawg]

Some fine parenting and good role models out there. Damon breaks up family for pussy is pretty selfish She should have remarried and let a real man help raise her kids.

What a bunch of whores out there. Glad my daughters were taught better that be that slutty.