Mama Hip Rockets
06-06-2016, 08:52 PM
Please vote for the two players you dislike the most in each heat. Feel free to give reasons (words, pictures, videos, etc.) why this player is unlikable, as it may not always be immediately evident and you may persuade others to join in your disdain of douchey players. Four players from the nomination poll will be chosen randomly for each heat, and the top two will go to round two.
HEAT 11:
Francisco Rodriguez (Angels, Mets, Brewers, Orioles, Tigers)
http://i.usatoday.net/sports/_photos/2012/02/19/K-Rod-mulls-legal-action-against-former-agents-3O1144NF-x-large.jpg
Unlikable Traits:
- Arrested for punching his father-in-law in the face, then screamed f-bombs at reporters who asked him about it. He actually punched the guy so hard that he tore ligaments in his own hand, causing him to miss the rest of the season.
- Was later arrested for beating up his girlfriend as well. A story also broke that he had previously beaten the woman so badly in Venezuela that she had to be hospitalized.
- Violated court orders not to contact his girlfriend after the arrest, and proceeded to send her 56 text messages anyway. Some of the gems he sent included:
-- "Thank you for sinking me and turning your back"
-- "Remember, greed is the first step toward treason."
-- "What are you going to tell the children when they grow up and we have nothing after you accused me of and destroyed my career." (his 15th and final text of that day)
- Also known for being a cocky hothead on the field.
Manny Machado (Orioles)
http://images.performgroup.com/di/library/sporting_news/b6/ee/manny-machado1-060914-ap-ftrjpg_1squ42yy1ar4hznyavmqzz2v2.jpg?t=-2103010466
Unlikable traits:
- Threw a tantrum when Josh Donaldson tagged him too hard with a baseball.
- Appeared to intentionally throw a bat at the Oakland A's after they pitched him inside the next day.
- Also threw his helmet at Donaldson during that series and hit a catcher with his bat on a backswing.
Matt Bush (Rangers)
https://static-blogmediainc.netdna-ssl.com/resize/1800/1200?url=https%3A%2F%2Fblog-blogmediainc.netdna-ssl.com%2Fupload%2FSportsBlogcom%2F1940638%2F0607045001450571500_filepicker.jpg
Unlikable traits:
- 1st overall pick in the 2004 MLB draft. Due to personal and legal problems, did not make the majors until this year.
- I'll just copy and paste some Wikipedia here:
A few weeks after the Padres drafted him in 2004, Bush was arrested on suspicion of felony assault, misdemeanor trespass, disorderly conduct, and underage drinking, after he allegedly fought with security trying to escort him out of a bar.[18]
In early 2009, Bush was allegedly involved in a drunken assault at a San Diego high school, which was caught on camera. According to witnesses, a drunken Bush beat up a high school lacrosse player with a golf club while screaming, "I'm Matt ****ing Bush!", which was recorded on videotape. This led the Padres to designate Bush for assignment following the team's signing of Floyd and then trade him to the Blue Jays.[3][8] Only a month later, he assaulted and berated a woman at a party in Florida, and was released by the Blue Jays for violating a "zero tolerance" agreement.[11]
On March 22, 2012, Bush was arrested and charged with two counts of DUI with property damage, one count of DUI with serious bodily injury, one count of leaving the scene of an accident with an injury, one count of driving with a suspended license, and 2 counts of leaving the scene of an accident with damage to property. In the incident, Bush hit 72-year-old motorcyclist Tony Tufano on the Tamiami Trail (U.S. Route 41) northbound in Port Charlotte, Florida, running over his head as he fled the scene in a Dodge Durango belonging to teammate Brandon Guyer. According to a witness, Tufano survived the incident because he was wearing a helmet.[19] Bush was arrested in North Port, three miles down the road from the accident. He was on the road after getting kicked out of a nearby strip club for trying to climb on the stage. When he was arrested, Bush had a blood alcohol content of .18, more than double the legal limit in Florida.[13] Bush spent the 2012 season housed at the Charlotte County Jail on $440,000 bail (reduced from an initial $1.015 million bond), and pleaded not guilty at his arraignment (via closed-circuit TV from the Charlotte County Jail) on May 21. Bush remains a suspect in two other hit and run accidents further north on the Tamiami Trail in Venice that occurred earlier that day.[20] The following Sunday, Rays general manager Andrew Friedman announced that Bush would never play for the Rays organization again.[21] The Rays placed Bush on the restricted list for the 2012 season, meaning that he was no longer on the 40-man roster, nor did he accumulate service time.[22] He was officially released on October 6.
On December 18, Bush accepted a plea bargain and pleaded no contest to one count of DUI with great bodily injury. He was sentenced to 51 months in prison. As this was Bush's third DUI conviction in 10 years, he was ineligible to drive legally in Florida for 10 years after his release from prison. In the process, Bush turned down a deal that had less prison time (3 years), but with 7 years probation owing to past alcoholism issues.[23][24] The Tufanos filed a $5 million civil suit against Bush, but settled in 2013 for a reported $200,000.[25]
Bush was housed at the Mayo Correctional Institution in Mayo, Florida, as of January 2015.[26] He was released from prison on October 30, 2015.
A.J. Pierzynski (Twins, Giants, White Sox, Rangers, Red Sox, Cardinals, Braves)
http://static.flickr.com/27/51946034_7de9c2c64d_o.jpg
Unlikable traits:
- Voted "meanest player," "most hated player," etc. by MLB players themselves.
- Bleached his hair. When he was a grown man.
- Barreled over Cubs catcher Michael Barrett and slapped home plate aggressively, prompting Barrett to punch him and start a brawl.
- Made an appearance on TNA professional wrestling.
- His own manager once said, "If you play against him, you hate him. If you play with him, you hate him a little less."
- Known for doing little things to annoy opposing pitchers and players, such as jogging right past the mound slowly after making an out or "accidentally" bumping into them between innings.
HEAT 11:
Francisco Rodriguez (Angels, Mets, Brewers, Orioles, Tigers)
http://i.usatoday.net/sports/_photos/2012/02/19/K-Rod-mulls-legal-action-against-former-agents-3O1144NF-x-large.jpg
Unlikable Traits:
- Arrested for punching his father-in-law in the face, then screamed f-bombs at reporters who asked him about it. He actually punched the guy so hard that he tore ligaments in his own hand, causing him to miss the rest of the season.
- Was later arrested for beating up his girlfriend as well. A story also broke that he had previously beaten the woman so badly in Venezuela that she had to be hospitalized.
- Violated court orders not to contact his girlfriend after the arrest, and proceeded to send her 56 text messages anyway. Some of the gems he sent included:
-- "Thank you for sinking me and turning your back"
-- "Remember, greed is the first step toward treason."
-- "What are you going to tell the children when they grow up and we have nothing after you accused me of and destroyed my career." (his 15th and final text of that day)
- Also known for being a cocky hothead on the field.
Manny Machado (Orioles)
http://images.performgroup.com/di/library/sporting_news/b6/ee/manny-machado1-060914-ap-ftrjpg_1squ42yy1ar4hznyavmqzz2v2.jpg?t=-2103010466
Unlikable traits:
- Threw a tantrum when Josh Donaldson tagged him too hard with a baseball.
- Appeared to intentionally throw a bat at the Oakland A's after they pitched him inside the next day.
- Also threw his helmet at Donaldson during that series and hit a catcher with his bat on a backswing.
Matt Bush (Rangers)
https://static-blogmediainc.netdna-ssl.com/resize/1800/1200?url=https%3A%2F%2Fblog-blogmediainc.netdna-ssl.com%2Fupload%2FSportsBlogcom%2F1940638%2F0607045001450571500_filepicker.jpg
Unlikable traits:
- 1st overall pick in the 2004 MLB draft. Due to personal and legal problems, did not make the majors until this year.
- I'll just copy and paste some Wikipedia here:
A few weeks after the Padres drafted him in 2004, Bush was arrested on suspicion of felony assault, misdemeanor trespass, disorderly conduct, and underage drinking, after he allegedly fought with security trying to escort him out of a bar.[18]
In early 2009, Bush was allegedly involved in a drunken assault at a San Diego high school, which was caught on camera. According to witnesses, a drunken Bush beat up a high school lacrosse player with a golf club while screaming, "I'm Matt ****ing Bush!", which was recorded on videotape. This led the Padres to designate Bush for assignment following the team's signing of Floyd and then trade him to the Blue Jays.[3][8] Only a month later, he assaulted and berated a woman at a party in Florida, and was released by the Blue Jays for violating a "zero tolerance" agreement.[11]
On March 22, 2012, Bush was arrested and charged with two counts of DUI with property damage, one count of DUI with serious bodily injury, one count of leaving the scene of an accident with an injury, one count of driving with a suspended license, and 2 counts of leaving the scene of an accident with damage to property. In the incident, Bush hit 72-year-old motorcyclist Tony Tufano on the Tamiami Trail (U.S. Route 41) northbound in Port Charlotte, Florida, running over his head as he fled the scene in a Dodge Durango belonging to teammate Brandon Guyer. According to a witness, Tufano survived the incident because he was wearing a helmet.[19] Bush was arrested in North Port, three miles down the road from the accident. He was on the road after getting kicked out of a nearby strip club for trying to climb on the stage. When he was arrested, Bush had a blood alcohol content of .18, more than double the legal limit in Florida.[13] Bush spent the 2012 season housed at the Charlotte County Jail on $440,000 bail (reduced from an initial $1.015 million bond), and pleaded not guilty at his arraignment (via closed-circuit TV from the Charlotte County Jail) on May 21. Bush remains a suspect in two other hit and run accidents further north on the Tamiami Trail in Venice that occurred earlier that day.[20] The following Sunday, Rays general manager Andrew Friedman announced that Bush would never play for the Rays organization again.[21] The Rays placed Bush on the restricted list for the 2012 season, meaning that he was no longer on the 40-man roster, nor did he accumulate service time.[22] He was officially released on October 6.
On December 18, Bush accepted a plea bargain and pleaded no contest to one count of DUI with great bodily injury. He was sentenced to 51 months in prison. As this was Bush's third DUI conviction in 10 years, he was ineligible to drive legally in Florida for 10 years after his release from prison. In the process, Bush turned down a deal that had less prison time (3 years), but with 7 years probation owing to past alcoholism issues.[23][24] The Tufanos filed a $5 million civil suit against Bush, but settled in 2013 for a reported $200,000.[25]
Bush was housed at the Mayo Correctional Institution in Mayo, Florida, as of January 2015.[26] He was released from prison on October 30, 2015.
A.J. Pierzynski (Twins, Giants, White Sox, Rangers, Red Sox, Cardinals, Braves)
http://static.flickr.com/27/51946034_7de9c2c64d_o.jpg
Unlikable traits:
- Voted "meanest player," "most hated player," etc. by MLB players themselves.
- Bleached his hair. When he was a grown man.
- Barreled over Cubs catcher Michael Barrett and slapped home plate aggressively, prompting Barrett to punch him and start a brawl.
- Made an appearance on TNA professional wrestling.
- His own manager once said, "If you play against him, you hate him. If you play with him, you hate him a little less."
- Known for doing little things to annoy opposing pitchers and players, such as jogging right past the mound slowly after making an out or "accidentally" bumping into them between innings.