Baseball Musings
Baseball Musings
July 07, 2006
Gagne with a Disc

Eric Gagne's woes continue. He now suffers from two herniated discs and may need surgery.

Manager Grady Little spoke to Gagne in the hospital Thursday morning and said the closer had concern in his voice.

'We have concern now too,' Little said. 'We hurt because he's not with us, but he hurts more.'

Assuming Gagne, 30, undergoes surgery, the club is not expected to exercise the $12-million option for next season. His contract includes a $1-million buyout.

'Anyone who knows Eric and the type of competitor he is knows this has been a frustrating time,' said Scott Boras , Gagne's agent. 'We can't predict the time frame. We do know there will be a time Eric Gagne will be back on a major league mound.'

Earlier this decade, I remember fans arguing about who was the greatest closer, Gagne or Rivera. The Gagne side would point to the streak. The Rivera side would point to the longevity. The Rivera side won this argument.


Posted by David Pinto at 09:05 AM | Injuries | TrackBack (0)
Comments

This only makes me appreciate Mo Rivera even more...

Posted by: Pete at July 7, 2006 11:16 AM

There's no comparison between the 2 of course, in spite
of millions of dollars of hype & publicity nightly on ESPN,
along with a graphic of Gagne's profile superimposed on the nightly reports, not to mention the team handing out
the important cookies in a low stakes environment, no
111 innings pitched in the post season, etc. I wish all players well, but anyone who thought there was any contest between the 2 must only be getting their information from ESPN.

Posted by: susan mullen at July 7, 2006 10:55 PM

heres to a speedy recovery

i wonder where he will wind up next year?

This could be an investment/gamble with a huge payoff (see thome, jim)

Posted by: tony flynn at July 8, 2006 02:37 PM

Obviously Rivera has had more long-term value, but does that really mean that he was a better pitcher than Gagne at his peak? It's one thing if a guy goes on an amazing 2-year streak and then can't sustain it because he regresses to the mean, and another if he can't sustain the streak because of injuries.

Posted by: Adam Villani at July 9, 2006 06:44 PM
Post a comment









Remember personal info?