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Reds Tidbits (2009 season)

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EDDIE GGGG27;1486797; said:
Clear channel laid off almost every1 a couple months back. IDK why the kept him either. Mo Egger is the only one worth listening to now.
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It was nice for a moment when the Dayton sports channel dumped him and Piecoro for Dan Patrick and Chris Myers.

Then the realization of how bad Chris Myers and his "show" are hit me. All california all the time with that hack.
 
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06/22/09 9:22 PM ET
Votto with Reds, to be activated Tuesday

On DL since May 30, slugger third on team in HRs, RBIs

By Mark Sheldon / MLB.com

CINCINNATI -- It appears that Reds first baseman Joey Votto is ready to return.
MLB.com learned that Votto was on the Reds' Monday charter flight to Toronto, where the Reds will open a three-game series on Tuesday vs. the Blue Jays.

Votto, a Toronto native, is likely to come off the disabled list, where he's been since May 30 because of an undisclosed stress-related issue. Before that development, the 25-year-old missed 12 starts because of dizziness brought on by an inner ear infection.
The 34-34 Reds could sorely use Votto's presence in the lineup after going 8-13 without him. He is batting .357 with eight home runs, 33 RBIs and a .464 on-base percentage in 38 games.
Votto played in three rehabilitation assignment games with Class A clubs in Sarasota and Dayton and one intrasquad scrimmage before it was decided to bring him back. He was 3-for-9 in his three games with a home run. An official roster move to activate Votto will likely be announced on Tuesday.

Mark Sheldon is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
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:groove2:
 
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I was just thinking about one thing I haven't thought about in a while...

Why in the hell does baseball have four 5 team divisions, one 4 team division, and one 6 team division? It still ticks me off the NL Central has 6 teams. Come on, would it be that hard to put Houston in the AL West? They switched teams between leagues before. Just stupid all around.
 
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Leake did have his worst stuff of the year against Texas in that first game. Word came out before his second start against Texas that he had some tendonitis under his tricep.

Don't let that start against Texas skew your view of Leake. He's a great pitcher and I think that tendonitis could have been a bigger problem than what ASU was letting on.

You don't go 16-1 with a 1.36 ERA and suck.

Hell, he only gave up 1 or 2 homers all year before he pitched in the CWS.

Hopefully he'll be good for the Reds. I know I'll be keeping tabs on him.
 
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scott91575;1486925; said:
I was just thinking about one thing I haven't thought about in a while...

Why in the hell does baseball have four 5 team divisions, one 4 team division, and one 6 team division? It still ticks me off the NL Central has 6 teams. Come on, would it be that hard to put Houston in the AL West? They switched teams between leagues before. Just stupid all around.
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Problem is the Rangers are in the AL West too. I think they need to either

(1) move Brewers to the AL Central and Kansas City to the AL West or
(2) move Houston to the NL West and have Arizona and Colorado flip a coin for who goes to the AL West

Unbalanced division schedules bother me. Unbalanced interleague schedules bother me even more. Normally I would argue that its bullshit that the Cardinals get to play Kansas City six times while the Reds have to play the Indians, but given the Reds just got swept by the Royals and the Tribe stinks, I won't make the argument right now. :tongue2:

You know, I'm sure the Mets loved that they had to play the Yankees dynasty six times a year while the Marlins got the Devil Rays when the Rays were a laughing stock.

The "protected interleague rivalry" is the stupidest thing in Major League Baseball. If its not the stupidest, it's at least up there with All Star games that end in ties, All Star games that decide World Series home field advantage, designated hitters, making fat old managers and coaches still wear players uniforms instead of letting them wear suits, and Reds ownership groups and front office personel when it comes to contracts and talent evaluation.
 
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Votto talked to the media @ 4 to explain what he's been going through


Cincinnati.com | Cincinnati Cincinnati Reds | Cincinnati.Com

Joey Votto said his father's death in August led to depression and severe anxiety attacks.

Votto said he suppressed his feelings for the rest of the 2008 season.

"I was severely depressed in the offseason," he said.

Baseball was a refuge. Votto said he was dealing with things pretty well until he got sick in May. He said an incident in Milwaukee was the worst of the three which happened on the field. "I was totally overwhelmed," he said.

He had one more bad incident while on the DL in early June. He ended up calling 911 at 3 or 4 in morning and going to the hospital. "I could not take it," he said. "I thought I was going to die."


I'm going to transcribe the tape now. What he said was pretty powerful. I'll post of all of it when I get it done.



Cincinnati.com | Cincinnati Cincinnati Reds | Cincinnati.Com

Here’s Joey Votto’s word-for-word explanation of how he ended up the disabled lsit:

“As some of you know, my father passed away last August. The first day back I kind of put that all on back burner and just played baseball all the way to the end of September. I don’t want to use the word suppress because he was in my thoughts and I was dealing with it on a daily basis. But, as powerful a moment that is to lose your father so young in a way I did suppress it. From August to beginning of spring training, I was pretty severely depressed. I was dealing with the anxiety of grief and sadness and fear. Every emotion you can imagine that everyone goes through.

“I had a really difficult time with it. I was by myself down in Florida. I just was really looking forward to baseball. When baseball started up in February, I kind of did the same thing I did last August and threw it all on the side, threw all my emotions on the back burner and played baseball.

“I got sick in May. I had the upper respiratory thing and the ear infection. It was taking the time away from baseball and recovering from being sick when for the first time all emotions that had been pushing to the side that had been dealing with and struggling with in the winter hit me. They hit me a hundred times more than I had been dealing with.

“I was taken out of three separate games. The first game it was a combination of me being ill. But I could tell there was something going on. I couldn’t recover. I had this feeling of anxiety. I had this feeling in my chest. The second time I came out in San Diego, it was similar. But I was healthy and I felt like I could’ve played.

“The third time was in Milwaukee, and I was totally overwhelmed.

“I spoke to some doctors. They came to the conclusion I was dealing with obviously being depressed and anxiety and panic attacks. They were overwhelming to point where I had to go to the hospital on two separated occasions. Once in San Diego and once – nobody had been told about – but I went to the hospital once in Cincinnati when the team was on the road.

“It was very, very scary and crazy night. I had to call 911 at 3 or 4 in the morning. It was probably the scariest moment I ever dealt with in my life. I went to the hospital that night.

“The days I was taken off the field were little, miniature versions of what I was dealing with by myself. Ever since I’ve been on the DL and even the little bit before the DL, I’ve been really struggling with this in my private life. I’d go on the field and try to do my best and play well. I had my spurts when I’d play well. But going out on the field . . . I couldn’t do it anymore because I was so overwhelmed physically by the stuff I was dealing with off the field.

“It finally seeped its way into the game. I just had to put an end to it. I really couldn’t be out there. It’s difficult to explain what I was going through. I couldn’t do it. I physically couldn’t do my job. That’s what I’ve gone through.

“I’ve been talking and seeing some doctors. They’ve been a great help. And speaking to people in general – I spoke to my team last week – and letting people know what I’ve dealing and how difficult this grieving process has been. My father was young, and I’m a young man. I really wish I hadn’t lost my father so young. I’m the oldest brother. I feel like I’m responsible for my family. Maybe I have proclivity for depression or whatever it is.

“But I was dealing with some pretty abnormal circumstances – the combination of being a major league ballplayer, a young ballplayer and also dealing with my father and my family.”
 
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Glad Votto went public. Lots of people end up in the ER with panic attacks thinking that they are heart attacks. Some of the speculation was quite wild as to what was the problem, so it is good to hear that it is something understandable and something that is quite treatable. Just knowing it is a panic attack and not something worse is often a great relief to the individual. Simple relaxation exercises go a long way. Meds can help, but side effects suck. I had some issues with panic attacks a few years ago and found that I functioned better without meds. Getting out of the stress of grad school helped. Can't imagine the pressure Joey is feeling. I lost my father around the same time and can easily say that I understand how the feelings can just come out of nowhere.
 
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when i was around 10 or 11 i used to have panic attacks daily, and it was awful to try and cope with. i eventually made a lot of progress as i got older, to the point where i haven't had one in years, but anyone who has had one knows just how difficult they are to live through.

for those who haven't, this is the best way i've been able to explain it: i think that our minds have several mental barriers that allow us to cope with tough situations or problems that we might have from time to time. a panic attack essentially removes all of these barriers, and every little worry or concern that you would normally brush off as silly or not even worth thinking about comes back in force and paralyzes you to the point where all you can do is sit and worry.

i fell really bad for votto. not just because i know what he's going through and how tough it is, but also because i know that the pressures of his life are probably way more intense than anything i've ever had to deal with. i hope no one gives him crap for this, but they might. because from the outside looking in, it's "oh geez, another 'mentally fragile' pro athlete, suck it up you baby." but it's not like that at all. good luck joey.
 
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MuckFich06;1487365; said:
Glad Votto went public. Lots of people end up in the ER with panic attacks thinking that they are heart attacks. Some of the speculation was quite wild as to what was the problem, so it is good to hear that it is something understandable and something that is quite treatable. Just knowing it is a panic attack and not something worse is often a great relief to the individual. Simple relaxation exercises go a long way. Meds can help, but side effects suck. I had some issues with panic attacks a few years ago and found that I functioned better without meds. Getting out of the stress of grad school helped. Can't imagine the pressure Joey is feeling. I lost my father around the same time and can easily say that I understand how the feelings can just come out of nowhere.
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I had it happen to me about 10 years ago. I think ignorance to the problem really makes it worse. It's like a snowball rolling down a snow covered hill. After the first one (which felt like I was going to have a heart attack) I began to worry about having another. The problem with that is worrying about having another one causes more attacks. It is really amazing what the mind can do to the body. At one point I was afraid to drive (I am sure this is how Joey felt while playing baseball). It makes it really tough to function. You can't just suck it up, because sucking it up normally leads to further feelings of stress and pressure (making it worse).

After some time (a little over a month) and using some relaxation methods it all went away. I haven't had an attack since then. Although I have read stories about people that are totally disabled by it. I never got that bad, but I can see it getting to that point. Untreated it makes it very difficult later to retrain your brain to think differently.
 
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There were some vicious rumors floating around - and not that what he's actually going through is any better - but I'm glad he's at a point now where he can come forward about it.

I hope that having his comeback series in his hometown helps him, and I hope he can somehow pick up where he left off.
 
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EDDIE GGGG27;1487353; said:
"I was severely depressed in the offseason,"

"I could not take it,"....."I thought I was going to die."

"I was dealing with the anxiety of grief and sadness and fear. Every emotion you can imagine......"

"I had a really difficult time with it."

"It was very, very scary and crazy night. I had to call 911 at 3 or 4 in the morning. It was probably the scariest moment I ever dealt with in my life. I went to the hospital that night.
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Sounds like someone interviewing me the day after they signed Tavaras.




All kidding aside, hope all is well with Votto. Its tough to lose a parent young.
 
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