July 22: In a sudden turnabout, the White Sox announced to reporters that Mercedes is in uniform and on their Triple-A club’s active roster for tonight’s road game in Durham (Twitter link via Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times).
In a new Instagram post of a phoenix rising, Mercedes writes that his dream is to be an established Major Leaguer and that he owes it to his family, the White Sox organization and his fans to continue working toward that goal. “I love everybody, I’m back,” he wrote at the end of his post.
July 21, 11:05pm: White Sox manager Tony La Russa only learned of Mercedes’ post after tonight’s game against the Twins but tells reporters he plans to reach out to Mercedes (Twitter links via MLB.com’s Scott Merkin).
La Russa drew plenty of criticism earlier this year for not supporting Mercedes after he missed a take sign and hit a 3-0 home run in a blowout win over Minnesota. Many have immediately jumped to the conclusion that La Russa’s handling of the situation contributed to Mercedes’ decision today, although there’s nothing to support that line of speculation. La Russa suggested that he and Mercedes are still on good terms:
“As you probably know, if you are paying attention, several times he said how close we are. He knows I’m a supporter of his. So I’ll reach out to him and see what’s going on. It could be he’s just feeling frustrated. … I’ll try to explain to him he’s got a big league future.”
9:15pm: White Sox designated hitter/catcher Yermin Mercedes announced on Instagram tonight that he’s stepping away from baseball “indefinitely.” The 28-year-old thanked his family, agent Daniel Szew, and his former teammates before concluding his post with the words: “it’s over.”
It’s a stunning development for a player whose breakout performance was one of the biggest storylines of the early 2021 season. Mercedes started the season as the White Sox’ designated hitter and went 8-for-8 to begin the year. Mercedes batted .368/.417/.571 through the season’s first 38 games, but he followed that up with a .150/.220/.196 across his next 118 plate appearances.
The White Sox optioned Mercedes to Triple-A Charlotte back on July 2, and he’s been ripping through minor league pitching since that time. In 14 games and 61 plate appearances, he’s batting .309/.377/.655 with four home runs, five doubles and a triple.
Despite Mercedes’ post tonight, the White Sox say they have not received any formal indication from the player himself. The team released the following statement:
“The White Sox are aware of tonight’s Instagram post by Yermín Mercedes, who is currently on the active roster of our Class AAA team in Charlotte. At this point in time, the White Sox have not received any official notification from Yermín concerning his future plans.”
TLR is rotting this team from the inside out.
Ridiculous comment.
here’s a reply to the instagram post
“thejackdalton_
todo por culpa de Tony la Russa”
Have to agree. While I may not agree with the hiring of him, him ripping out the organization has nothing to do with Mercedes current situation
It very well may. Recall TLR’s absurd hissy fit after Mercedes hit that 3-0 bomb.
If that’s the reason he is stepping away he needs a therapist. Tony should have never said what he said but that was a meaningless gesture in the long run. He is “stepping away” because the league adjusted and he started slumping a little before the 3-0 swing.
@endinstealth i agree tlr should of handled the 3~0 pitch hr a lot better tlr had a point as well. you play these guy’s a lot during the season, and why give a team bulletin board materialfor the next game. where i believe tlr was in the wrong and from what i can remember never did as the cards skipper was throw a player under the bus. is that he should of taken the player aside and talk to him but then again he may if done that and still didn’t respond.
By turning them into one of the best teams in baseball? Lol
LaRussa is not the reason they are top team.
100% agree
Of course it is…Do not be silly or ignore his impact and ways to win ball games. That’s idiotic.
It’s idiotic to think a coach have an influence on gameplay.
If that’s the case, why have them at all?
So let’s recap this thinking:
If a manager (what you called a coach) refuses to let a rookie blow off a take sign, that manager’s influence is so profound that he can destroy said rookie’s career.
But, at the same time, that manager’s influence is so negligible that it has no effect on the other 25 players on the roster.
If it’s a good outcome, the manager has no influence; but if it’s a bad outcome his influence is the cause.
Is that about it?
You are absolutely correct on that comment. I’m a huge Sox fan but it’s truly amazing how well this team has played considering they have an ass bag for a manager. I just fear when they play tough teams and get into the playoffs they’re gonna need a competent manager.
As Dave Roberts has shown over the years, the playoffs are really where you can see a managers decision making and impact
Logic is lost on many of these confused souls. I appreciated the wealth of common sense you provided! Couldn’t agree more.
Let’s not even start on Dave Roberts, and his crapy managerial style. Letting Jansen some in last night was indefensible and like usual he just says that Jansen is his guy.
WTF?
Ridiculous comment
Oh yeah. Never mind the fact that he currently has the best record in the AL and has pretty much wrapped up the division title already. But yeah him sending down a flash in the pan just completely wrecked the team. SMH
@hiflew Uuuuh no, the White Sox players currently have the best record in the AL and are the ones who have the division wrapped up. You really believe that this team can’t win without that old man? Stevie Wonder could probably manage the Sox and they’ll still win that division with the amount of talent on that team. Not to mention the guys currently on the IL like Madrigal, Jimenez, and Robert. I do agree with you that LaRussa is not the reason this dude is in triple-a.
If you agree with him then why are you arguing? He’s just pointing out the hypocrisy that a manager can somehow be to blame for this specific player’s failings but also not receive credit for the success of the other players on the roster.
Serious question: I don’t follow much in the AL, so don’t know how TLR has managed this year. I didn’t think it was a good role for him this year, but I’m curious from the WS fans (and others in the AL central/AL in general) how is La Russa holding up so far? Doing a good job or not? Is his managing-brain sharp???? Thx!
I wouldn’t trust Stevie Wonder managing the bullpen arms. Otherwise, I agree.
Except they had pretty much the same team last year and did NOT win the division. And those injured guys weren’t injured then. And their manager was a little better than Stevie Wonder. “That old man” is probably one of the 5 finest minds ever to manage in the major leagues. He basically set up the modern bullpen that every team uses. Maybe show a little respect for “that old man” at least in regards to his baseball knowledge.
If any one player deserves much credit for their record-it’d be Rodon. He’s been one of the best pitchers in baseball this year. I’m not such a huge fan of La Russia anymore, but it’s hard to argue against the results.
The players love him, and have bought into the way he manages. He is about one thing and one thing only: winning.
He manages the dugout and the game on the field, but he lets Tim Anderson and Jose Abreu run a loose clubhouse. He stays out of their way in the clubhouse.
Then why do managers get the blame when a team is losing? Isn’t this years team similar to last years team? Doesn’t really matter though since they get to beat up on the worst division in baseball and they won’t make it past a Western or Eastern division team come playoffs
21st century Sox fare much better in October baseball than their Central counterparts. If they’re a good enough team, and clicking enough, they’ll win.
Katz fixed Rodon. No TLR no Katz.
Or having Tommy John surgery fixed Rodon!
Uh excuse me , wrapped up????
The Indians a few years ago won 22 in a row and Francona, not LaRussa is the best manager in baseball.
@paddy – and let’s not forget Lance Lynn. The pitching and lack of competition in the central has certainly been factors in the success this year. The only thing I could compliment TLR on is that he hasn’t screwed it up.
I agree. Stevie Wonder doesn’t run bullpens based on matchups. He’s very superstitious…
I heard Stevie is a wiz when it comes to handling arms in the pen.
@Ketch nice bro, nice.
Such a Twitter lemming take. They’re in first place. Arguably World Series favorites, yet a 28 year old rookie gets set down after coming back to earth from a hot start, and all the blame gets put on Tony la russa.
I mean, please stop. The man is managing against a weak division and is lucky Cleveland and Minnesota have had issues this year.
Honestly, they could stick a dead guy in the dugout and that corpse would win 90.
if anyone told Reinsdorf that a corpse was going to work, he would have done it already.
But unfortunately I think the players would object to the dugout becoming a morgue.
They are definitely not the WS favorites.
Aren’t even the best in the AL and he thinks WS favorite? Although that pitching will be tough.
what an unreasonable assumption
Try to have a life outside the internet. Or.. have you already tried that and failed?
Good one. I am going to steal that comment from you.
He definitely killed his spirit. Guys thrive when they’re allowed to be who they are. TLR isn’t a good fit for today’s game. Yes, they are winning but with their talent, they were the heavy favorite.
Killed his spirit? Is he an 11 year old boy? Jesus. The dude sucked. Can anybody say Dan Palka 2.0?
11? Have you see what they’re doing in colleges….people seem to think any adversity is some sort of life threatening event.
I’m having a t-shirt made for myself. It’ll simply read: “Spirit Killer”.
When your position is DH your value is limited and your competition is vast….. Yermin > Dan Palka….. I take exception to the Palka comparison LOL
Their talent has spent more time in medical facilities than on the field. Even with a healthy lineup, Chicago was at no point a “heavy favorite” during the preseason. At best they were neck and neck with Minnesota. Now the Twins have sunk and the White Sox are getting by with a big infusion from the minor leagues. I hate to post facts and ruin the reputation of the internet, but I couldn’t resist.
And this is due to La Russa? It really seems like many blow hards on here don’t know what managers actually do
This foo.
To the point the team is in first place.
Yeah. Rotting them all the way to a tie with Boston for the best record in the AL.
SMH
Tony ruined this man, I looked at his game by game logs, counted the number of ab’s and hits before and after May 17th, That 3-0 HR. Yermin was batting 46/123, used a batting average caluator .374. Guess what happened after? 16/111 .144, that is not a cold streak. That is too big of a drop-off for it to had been gradural. Tony ruined this man, as a Cubs fan that once hated Yermin I feel terrible for him.
Why would you have “hated” Yermin? Cubs never even played against him so I don’t know where that could have come from.
Mercedes was 1 for 11 in the 3 games before the “incident” and 4 for 11 in the 3 games after. Couldn’t have crushed him too badly.
How was it even possible to hate Yermin? He was around for 2 months. To say that Tony “ruined this man”, is one of the dumber things I’ve read in awhile. I’m a die hard Cubs fan, and I thought he was a great story to start the year.
Did you just say “batting average calculator”?
Sure sweetie!
So it was too long but you read it anyway?
This only proves TLR right. I get why people hate on TLR but he’s done a brilliant job with that team and should be manager of the year.
Why? Because he doesn’t coddle his players like special snowflakes, and expects them to be professionals and listen to their coaches and managers?
You are a fool for making comments like that, have your mom check the spelling next time
Would you like to tell me where my spelling error is located?
They are the second best team in the AL. Your comment is crazy.
When I noticed the white Sox outrighted Mercedes I did some research. I found a Jomboy video, and the whole thing was crazy. 3-0 count position pitcher on the hill and “oh I was jumping up on the top step of the dugout telling him not to swing.” My first thought was well wait second? These two events have to be related? Mercedes decline, and TLR totally throwing him under the bus, they have to be related? If not then its just a major coincidence? Like Scott Rolen and Tony not talking? That was fake right?
‘TLR is rotting this team from the inside out.’
Because Gabe Kapler is such a role model.
The new MLB baseball “let them play” = drama. Yes I am old and admire the greats of my lifetime such as Cal Ripken.
He’s BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACCKKKKKK!
He fits right in with this whole organization. From ownership to their looney tune TV ‘boys’.
I wanna pledge my undying love for you, Dogbone. Let’s be together forever. I can’t deny these feelings any longer.
Will you marry me?
Yermin is baack!!!!
Break out the crib and the high chair. Also, prepare the diaper station and find his favorite pacifier.
Tony LaRussa is responsible for Modern Baseball and can play six holes at any PGA course he wants. Please show some respect.
@ SFBay314
Yep, he’s “rotting this team from the inside out”, that’s why they’re rotting so badly by having won 58 games thus far and being in 1st place by 8.5 games and on their way to either a division win or a playoff spot. 46 people supported your comment, which aptly demonstrates how ridiculous it is in the world right now.
The facts contradict your comment and the people that supported it, but living in this world right now I know facts don’t matter too much anymore, only to the people that are fair and honest.
I thought the same thing when he was with the Cardinals at first!!!! Because he was the person who Benched Ozzie Smith in favor of Royce Clayton. The Cardinals beloved Ozzie retire
First thing I did was checked today’s date. This makes no sense.
this seems kinda scary weird to me
agreed. mental health check for sure!
The “it’s over” sounds very ominous. Hopefully nothing seriously bad has happened.
looks like same old same old
https://chicago.suntimes.com/sports-saturday/2021/5/29/22457241/white-sox-yermin-mercedes-has-an-unwritten-rule-to-be-himself-always
Yea. Ominous. Hopefully he’s ok, whatever is going on.
He’s been Yerminated.
Lmao
They should have him try pitching in relief. He can’t do worse than what they have.
He’ll be back.
Nice
self-yerniation never works
This really hurts to hear. Hope to see him back sooner than later
Well I didn’t think that soon
Some bad news is likely coming
This news not bad enough for you?
Maybe not if it’s something personal, something bigger than the game. Hope it’s not.
If this is only baseball-related and there’s not a ton of behind the scenes stuff that we don’t know about, I’ll be disappointed in him. Coaches come down on players, sometimes players disagree. Get over it. Yermin can blame whomever he wants for his struggles, but the truth is when pitchers adjusted to him, he expanded the strike zone instead of adjusting back. He was doing well in the minors and could have been part of a trade for a reliever or something. It’s not like that was his only shot ever at the big leagues.
This makes me sad.
I almost had a heart attack/ I thought you were Xabial for a second. What happened to that dude?
No clue but his legend lives on through me. 🙂
I’d go to the hospital and get it removed.
He currently writes for MLBTR but I can’t disclose his name
Tony strikes again!
These takes are the worst. His comments were dumb, but if THAT is all it takes to make you retire then you weren’t really passionate about the game to begin with.
His comments seemed to galvanize the team. If you think LaRussa is bad at managing a baseball then you’re a fool.
The hissy fit he threw after Mercedes hit a 3-0 bomb? You’re saying that galvanized the team? What?
Thanks jerk larussa
huh?
…PED suspension incoming…?
Unless there is more to this story than we are being told it makes zero sense. Perhaps Mercedes is upset he hasn’t been recalled yet?
He’s been in the minors for 10 years, surely he’s aware that these things have a tendency to develop slowly. He’s tearing up AAA pitching so a recall would have been coming sooner rather than later. It doesn’t make sense to get frustrated after only 14 games in AAA, especially when he’s still a rookie.
Few thoughts:
1) I don’t think that this was caused by Tony LaRussa
2) I am more than happy to go along with the idea that it was so that LaRussa can be piled on. No respect for LaRussa from me.
3) I just hope there’s not a domestic violence thing coming.
4) Best wishes all the way to Mercedes.
Some kind of drugs or Peds or something is going on
Or a health issue. Or a family issue. Or none of the above.
Likely just simple immaturity.
Or maybe he went the same way as the SDSU running back
Why would you not respect one of the greatest managers in the history of the game?
This is going to be interesting. With him tearing up the minors some team has to be willing to give him playing time… This could be anything.
Play me or Trade me moment?
That’d be pretty arrogant for a guy with exactly one good month in the majors. But if he could be part of a package for a decent righty reliever, I’d trade him in a second.
Wow. Not good for the Pale Sox fans. Hoping for the best here. Must be a family thing
Coming from a Sox season ticket holder we don’t care…should have traded him while hot…Tony has this team playing playoff baseball with a AAA roster
My cousin played college ball decades ago. He watched a Sox game. I asked him what he thought. He told me that he hadn’t seen defense and baserunning like that since Little League.
Laughed and told him that was my impression of the team as well.
Watched “A” Sox game and he’s an expert??
Oh crap. Here I was pulling for the Sox. Now I see that your cousin, who played ball years ago at college but apparently wasn’t good enough to hook on to a MLB team, evaluated the team after one game. His opinion? Not good.
Guess I’ll look for another team to follow. This analysis is .way too conclusive .
Very good post. Thanks for sparing us the misery of watching a first place team. Oh, and thank your cousin for me. And…..tell him I’ll have fries with that too.
So your cousin who hasn’t played in a decade says the Sox can’t run bases or play defense. Well nobody cares about what either of you guys think.
Didn’t you see? His cousin played college ball decades ago. A very decorated expert lol.
a AAA team…with the two best pitchers in the league so far this season
And last seasons AL MVP.
Shoulda been DJLM…
That’s some AAA team
“AAA” team with:
Last season’s MVP
Top 3 catcher in the league
Former batting champ
Former #1 overall prospect
Best rotation in the league
Highest paid closer in the league
Doesn’t want to play for Tony LaDrunkass
Tony led a very marginal Cardinals team to a World Series title. I believe that team won 86 games during the regular season. Say what you want about his drinking according to records he is the number two manager of all time. Even now the second best active behind Francona. Was there anyone better to hire for this season? Nah.
He sounds like a big baby. I still like the guy and hopes he makes it back. Find a position dude if you want to stay on a big-league roster.
And yet David Ortiz and Nelson Cruz never even attempted to improve their defense and teams would love to sign them.
So you’re saying he should roid up?
They all have the same attitude already.
Not really a comparison. He’s not close to those two offensively. If he could produce a .850 OPS with 30+ HRs over the full season then he’d be their full time DH. Wisdom over on the North side was a similar story this year, except he plays solid defense. He’s slowed down to around a .770 OPS since his hot start, but hopefully he can stick around.
You think being able to play the field never crossed his mind? Being a DH wasn’t a choice, it was his only opportunity.
Too much to drink, it’ll be deleted by morning
So at age 28.. having found himself.. he wants to played or traded?
Seems to be a bit of a head case. I’m sure he’ll retract it in short order. Or maybe he can go drive an Uber instead.
How hilarious would it be if he did drive an Uber and had to chauffeur a drunk TLR back to his house?
yeah because TLR is known for calling Uber when hammered
While the Yankees’ Domingo German was being investigated for assault, he did something similar on Instagram. Obviously, he later retracted his statement.
Domingo did so while serving his suspension, not when he was being investigated. https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/29490072/yankees-pitcher-domingo-german-not-retiring-apologizes-cryptic-post
Right.
I sincerely hope this isn’t another German situation. That would mean there’s a victim.
Hopefully just frustrated at his current situation and some of the choices/actions that created it.
Yeah, me too. I wasn’t implying that it is similar situation.
Of course that’s what you were implying, why make the connection and state it in this column if not?
Maybe as a rule, all the dudes suggesting that this is ped or domestic violence related take a breather and walk away from the computer.
Oh my goodness. Sox fans can we please stop with the “LaRussa ruined him, it’s Tony’s fault” It’s just a dumb lazy comment.
Here’s the truth, Yermin is a 28 year old career minor leaguer who had a ridiculous, unsustainable start to his career and advanced scouting and pitching caught up to him. Just stop, it was a great little ride but fools gold to think this was anything more just a flash in the pan. Good luck to him, thanks for the memories Yermin
This
Everything you said is true. Also TLR seems like a pretty awful human and it didn’t seem like he did too much to improve Mercedes’ chances. Both things can be true.
A DUI does not make someone an awful human being. All the hate he gets is really starting to make me like him.
LaRussa ruined him. It’s Tony’s fault.
Yea he ruined him so hard he somehow managed to make him go 1-11 before the incident. It was like a black hole that managed to sap away his will to play before the event even happened! Call abc 7 news!
I’ve never seen such love for a Quad A player in my life. Never seen such hate for a manager in my life. I’m a Sox fan. I wanted Hinch, not LaRussa. But this infatuation with hating LaRussa is bizarre. The man is arguably a top 5 manager in BB history, and the sympathy is for a cult figure hero backbencher. I wish he would’ve succeeded, but to blame a manager for a player hitting a buck sixty for a month plus is BS. It was fun while it lasted, that’s that.
Ya but LaRussa is a piece of trash human being.
So you think it’s appropriate to just blame him for this? That sounds like…a pretty trash thing to do.
Throwing stones in a glass house bud. He’s trash because he has two DWI’s? I’m guessing you’re the captain of the neighborhood watch and a non posthumous MOH winner. Give me a break with your sanctimony.
So are you though.
BravesCanada: Obviously you, unlike Larussa, are an outstanding citizen, flawless human being. Am I right?
This is where we are at in society –
That female tennis player that quit b/c of anxiety is a cult hero to the youth now and got sponsored by Nike the next week
I don’t understand any of it nor do I think I want to
Well that was a helluva 60 day career.
Yeah, I’d like to have been able to have an 8 year (milb) career followed up by a 2 month showcase in the MLB. That would have been a great ride. Unfortunately I wasn’t born with that type of skillset. So I have to settle being an armchair GM just like millions of others.
Go home Yermin you’re drunk
Well
Bye
I’m not a fan of his at all, but this is exactly why LaRussa is a Hall of Famer. Yermin is not only a cancer, he’s also a quitter. LaRussa’s sole goal is to win a World Series and he had enough of the selfish non team player that Mercedes was and he was gone long before any of us outside the team would have thought.
Get these last 15 minutes, Yermin.
When the going gets tough——guess who crumbles——the weak and the selfish.
I think fans tend to forget that ball players are human too. He has same issues we deal with daily plus baseball that keeps him away from family. This is probably a personal issue and he needs time to deal with it, let’s all respect him and wish him well
If it was a personal issue he needed time to deal with, why’d he run to instagram to let everyone know? Do people ever get tired of making excuses? Doing this via instagram before letting the team know is pretty BS, no matter what is happening.
This entire country makes excuses when things don’t go their way. Currently, small business owners.
Not only our country but other countries as well. We’re all flawed. Some of us are just more willing to admit, to be open about it and TRY not to act holier than thou. Your comment re small businesses was definitely off mark. My wife and I owned a small business for 15 years (no longer in business). Until you ACTUALLY are in the situation you have NO IDEA what it takes to run a small business. It was great at times, it was terrible at times, it was terrific at times, it was scary at times. When you make a mistake it can really cost you for several months. You don’t have big corporate money but you’re a small minnow in the retail ocean. I’m very blessed to be able to say that my wife and I were given the opportunity to own and operate our own business.
Never judge someone until you walk a mile in their shoes. That is lost on most people today.
You are not in his head, so to say it is BS is simply your opinion. Not his.
I don’t need to be in someone’s head to understand how professionalism works. Sometimes, your feefees aren’t the most important thing.
He’s a 28-year-old who can only be a DH who has endured 10 years in the minors. If he hadn’t had that glorious 6 weeks this Spring, no one would really be questioning a decision to “step away”/retire.
Now, he may have been told (or may just be able to observe) that he is unlikely to be called back up by the White Sox this year. With Eloy and Robert on their way back, there isn’t much room on the roster. And fellow rookies Sheets and Burger are also performing offensively and offer defensive value, so they’d be blocking any roster openings that might arise. The whipsaw from rookie sensation to no chance at the show has got to be tough on a guy.
Or it might be something completely unrelated to baseball?
100%
I don’t know what to think just yet, but this take makes a lot of sense. Hope it’s nothing worse.
So you go back down, keep hitting, and force the issue. Universal DH coming. Some team would trade for him.
Notice how nobody was quick to credit La Russa for Mercedes’ early success, but the moment he fails it must be La Russa’s fault. That seems to be the mentality around managers in general. The team wins a World Series and the manager gets maybe a 1/20th of the credit at best. But the team fails to win the World Series because his pitchers went out and gave up 50 runs in 4 games and suddenly he has to go. The reality is that Mercedes’ successes and his struggles had nothing to do with La Russa at all. To imply otherwise is asinine.
It’s the same thing as Dusty Baker getting heat any time any pitcher on his team gets injured just because people blame him for Kerry Wood and Mark Prior not being superhuman. Never mind the fact that Dusty also managed a Reds team that went through the entire season with only 5 starters (aside from one Sept call up start) in 2012. But the minute a starter gets hurt it’s his fault.
Honestly, unless the manager is leaving his pitchers in for 200 pitches, he’s not really to blame for injuries to the staff. In a similar vein, if a team scores 0 runs, unless the manager pinch hit his DH with the bat boy, that’s not his fault either. A good manager is important, but it will only be the difference maker in 3 or 4 important games all season long. Whether those important games are in the playoffs is mostly on the front office to make sure the manager has a good team under his belt.
I believe the manager has a little more impact than that. Specifically on the way the lineup is set. Or which specific bench bat to use in each situation. Or maybe whether to bench your struggling star position player vs. letting him work it out on the field. There are a hundred different decisions that get made every game that can be impacted by a manager.
But I do agree that once those decisions are made it is up to the players whether the manager is considered a genius or an idiot.
@ No Soup For Yu!
A baseball manager has an enormous impact on his team. Far, far more than 3 or 4 games a year.
Have you ever worked in an organization? Did you perform at the same level no matter who your direct report was and what he/she wanted out of you?
People are not programmed robots. Our bodies react differently to the food we eat, the exercise (of lack of) that we take. Doctors and nurses know that sick people with the same problem will react differently to the same medications and or rehab routine – which is why they’re needed. Adjustments for each individual have to be done until the process begins to work. It’s why a baseball player can succeed in one organization for a manager yet fail at different organization under another manager…and visa versa.
Yeah these would make a big difference if you were hiring just some average Joe off the street to be your manager, but I’m talking about the difference between two qualified candidates, an adequate manager and a good manager. That will make a difference of 4 games per year, maybe. Obviously if they hired the lead custodian from their stadium it would be a difference of 30 or 40, but nobody’s doing that.
I agree with much of what you just said but think it’s a little different with TLR where he is going to receive additional criticism with anything because he should never have been given the job to begin with. When the owner hires his buddy who’s famous for archaic managing styles, outdated views of the game, and controversial politics in the middle of being criminally prosecuted, you just kinda lose the benefit of the doubt
After 10 years in the minors it’s possible he sold his soul to the devil for one glorious six week run and now it’s payback time.
Too bad you people chose to ruin America rather than doing the right thing by Jesus and keeping your own religion to your own selves.
Not men enough to turn the other cheek if someone doesn’t believe in your Jesus?
Just underhanded scum who use dope on other people and other people’s children.
Dude it was a joke. Jesus.
hol up what happened to the yerminator thoughts and prayers to him
enough with the larussa takes. team is in first place by a lot with 4 bats out of the line up due to injury. hopefully its not a mental health crisis.
Is it possible that his Ruthian start to the season was a result of…pharmaceuticals, and his doctor declined to give him a refill? Just sayin’.
This is infinitely more likely than La Russa “ruining his confidence.” He hasn’t seemed to ruin anyone else’s confidence. Had Mercedes started out hitting .150 and then turned it on to bat .360 over several months, would people credit La Russa for his stunning turn around, or would they have credited Mercedes’ “work ethic”?
Yes – INFINITELY more likely, but now he’s hitting like a superstar in AAA again. A couple of dumbasses implying PEDs – well done.
I don’t think you understand the difference between AAA pitching and major league pitching. Him tearing up AAA pitching doesn’t prove anything aside from that he’s deserving of another big league call up. It doesn’t prove that his flash in the pan start wasn’t due to something extra. I should clarify I’m not saying he’s taking PEDs or that he ever took PEDs, just that between the choices of “TLR drove him from baseball,” vs. “He took PEDs and now he can’t compete without them,” the latter seems much more likely than the former.
This is LaRussa ruining his confidence. No other way to put it. I respect his coaching but disagree with how he interacts with how players. Imagine if he didn’t tell him not to swing on 3-0? Where would the White Sox be? Overall this is sad, and baseball needs the Yerminator
Yeah, it’s truly sad that adult MLB players aren’t coddled. And baseball certainly will crumble and fall without the career minor leaguer. Your takes are FANTASTIC!
Considering he was already on the downswing several games before the incident. No. This wasn’t Larussa ruining his confidence.
“(Mercedes) An 18-year-old in 2011 who signed with the Nationals as an international free agent, saw bright lights and dollar signs in his future and then, the day he was released after three seasons in the organization, told his father he was quitting the sport. . .
“Our guys were aware of some of the question marks that were on him (Mercedes),” Hahn says. “They seemed to all be rooted in questions of maturity and the seriousness with which he took his craft.” ….
“There had probably been some things that happened, whether it was unprofessionalism, a lack of diligence, maybe attention to the demands of the sport not being up to par,” Sox assistant general manager/player development Chris Getz says. “But we don’t really care about the past, and we want our players to feel that. Some guys just need more structure and help than others.”
If Yermin is struggling and needs help, I hope he gets it.
I hope everything is OK for Yermin.
“Mercedes, 28, who was optioned to Charlotte on July 2, started for the Knights Wednesday and was removed from the game for a pinch-hitter after two at-bats.”
I think the first ripple in this story was back when he hit that 3-0 colossal homer off of a position player against Minnesota, then LaRussa threw him under a bus publically, then tried to get him hurt the following game, then essentially praised the Twins for throwing at him. However, I think the bigger issues stem from the likelihood that the Sox will have no room for Yermin when Robert and Jimenez are back (especially with how every one else that has been brought up, or back from injury, is producing well) and he has a strong attachment to this club. Another part of this may be the fact that Yermin had to fight so hard to get to a major league club that being back to the minors really has to hurt his ego. Its sad that he would give up, but its a numbers game and he was slumping against pitchers who got a book on him in the majors. I think he can still produce but not at the level he was at the start of the season with the Sox. Finally if they could trade him (and Im sure someone would take a flyer on him as a DH) he knows that if he fails to produce he is back in the minors again for a guy who had to fight for 10 years to get to the majors in the first place. He’ll always be in the record books and in Sox fans hearts for helping this team get off to the great start it did, and I hope he is really not giving up on baseball but just taking a break from it.
Big proponent for Yermin getting his shot while they paid pricey washed up DH’s instead (like EE), but he didn’t adjust for a long stretch after incredible start. As an apolitical guy who has no great love either way, I see a huge similarity between many of those who have irreversible disdain for DT and TLR…..old guys who represent authority figures they hate to no end. It’s often otherwise smart people. TLR has “adapted” to his team after rough start both on interpersonal level and day-to-day lineup adjustments. That seems to irk people more who are dug in to dismissing his skills-b/c they don’t like him.
“.I see a huge similarity between many of those who have irreversible disdain for DT and TLR…..old guys who represent authority figures they hate to no end”
Daddy issues – the RAGE in these people would be laughable if it did not have serious real world consequences
We have generations of overgrown kids that throw tantrums when they can’t do what they want to do when they want to do it. Everyone must respect them while they respect nothing but their own whims.
Watch how ESPN covers the NBA and NFL. It goes on year round. I see it at the workout club on the TV in the men’s locker room when I’m dressing. The players, their agents, and the commentators all have the veins sticking out of their neck as they yell into the camera…..usually something about injustice.
Know who’s never represented in those takes? The fans. The paying fans. We don’t count. Neither do their teammates or coaches. It’s all about them wanting their bottle.
I quit watching the NBA and NFL years ago. MLB is on probation.
Yes, Trump definitely has rage issues, possibly stemming from how his daddy treated him.
show me on the doll where he hurt you sweetheart
poor guy, TLR ruined him
Couldn’t believe my eyes!! This is going to get even more interesting when details start coming out!
TLR doesn’t seem like the greatest human being, and he’s probably pretty out of touch with the younger generation, but he is a really good manager. His team, at full strength, is as talented as any in baseball. To blame him for Yerm quitting is a pretty soft take. I do hope Yerm gets help if he needs it and that he’s okay…Maybe Drew Robinson can reach out to him?
There’s no rhyme or reason why he was sent down to triple-A this long. The truth is the Sox never expected (or wanted) Mercedes to be successful and in the starting lineup. They’re too invested in Vaughn and Collins to care. The reality is Mercedes is a better hitter than both of them. The slump gave them a convenient excuse to get rid of him, which means more ABs for Vaughn and Collins. Personally, I’ll be happy to see Eloy take over DH from Vaughn.
@Chisox thanks for the response. I’m definitely not in tune with the day to day aspects of the White Sox like you are. It sounds like they’re more invested in the success of their homegrown players.
Brilliant observation!
They wanted to bury him in AAA rather than trade him for a quality player…….
Or – just throwing this out there – maybe no team wanted to take the guy on. Huuummmmmm? How about the Sox give him his release and we’ll see the teams that line up to take on this immature head case….as if that wasn’t already known in MLB FO’s.
Clown comment.
@ ChiSoxCity;
Yes, I know.
Maybe you’ll do better next time.
This is ridiculous. Yermin belongs on a big league club. If the Sox can’t find a role for him, trade him to someone who’ll give him a chance!
He had one good month in ten years. Trade him to someone who’ll give him a chance? If any team offered anything for him, the Sox would have jumped on it
One good month? This dude has done nothing but rake for the past two years. His be one of the best hitters in the entire organization since Spring Training LAST SEASON. You might want to start paying attention to the team before spouting your mouth off and sounding like a fool.
@chisoxcity
Lol lol
Best hitter in the org? He was hot for like 4 weeks and then he was literally one of the worst hitters in all of professional baseball for the rest of his MLB at bats.
Don’t tell me he was good at AAA — baseball history is littered with 28 year olds who learned how to mash AAA pitching but can’t hit big league pitching or play defense. They’re free on the waiver wire every year. Nobody would trade a bag of balls for Yermin Mercedes.
@chisoxcity
Lol
To all the TRL haters who have posted on this thread. Why lie to yourselves? TRL did nothing to Yermin. Yermin lacked Tegridy!
Karma came back in a big way. See ya yermin!
WTF????
Yermín hit .364 with 6 HR, 25 RBI through the game when La Russa talked him down, .162, 1, 11 after.
Good point.
As if no one 28 years old was ever told something by the person they reported to that they didn’t like. My heavens – TLR hurt the childs widdow feewings! Organize marches and burn down buildings!! Demand Congress pass a law!!!!
–
The overgrown, pampered child seems to have a spine of jelly.
Why don’t you call his agent and volunteer to change his diapers?
In this particular case, it’s not an American woke thing, I think – he’s got a bad track record of stuff, like a triple Dick Allen, except emo and cheerful rather than grouchy and jackass
see here
https://chicago.suntimes.com/sports-saturday/2021/5/29/22457241/white-sox-yermin-mercedes-has-an-unwritten-rule-to-be-himself-always
*Triple A* Dick Allen
@ Nuanced Jamesian;
Dick – nee Ritchie – Allen was in the major leagues at age 21. At age 22 he was a consistent .300 hitter with OBP’s in the high .300’s, OPS’s in the .800’s, .900’s and a few times over 1.000. There were many times he took critiquing from his manager, coaches, fans and the media, but he didn’t shrivel up and hit .200.
In his early 30’s he broke down, but when the Sox got him Chuck Tanner played up to him and got him back on track for 3 years. The Sox sent him back to Philly where he nosedived into Oakland and then retirement.
I read your article. I have friends that are retired psychiatrists. Maybe they can make head or tails out of this. All I see is a lot of me-me-me BS, which includes the Instragram post.
Over the past 25 or so years I’ve tuned off MLB 3 or 4 times for years at a time. Part of it comes from knowing a (very successful) MLB manager and finding out the realities of how players view the game, the fans, and even understanding that clubhouse team leaders are a must for a team to stay in line to win…..as the players are forever complaining to their agents who in turn are in touch with the GM and/or other FO people (for superstars they contact the owner). I try to look past that. But the game I watch is so lacking in fundamental play with players overloading one side of the field on defense, batters hitting endless foul balls, and pitchers throwing their arms out so often that they’ve had to resort to cheating a la Gaylord Perry. Meanwhile what used to be 2 – 2.5 hour games now take 3 – 4.5 hours. Rosters change 3-5 times a week. Fans can’t keep up with who’s on their team, let alone one of the other teams in the ever expanding leagues. And it’s pretty obvious that the players play for their statistics – as statistics have become institutionalized into how their salaries are determined. It’s all a big money grab. Like an AM disk jockey, the ones that can do the most bizarre things get the attention, pub, notoriety, and money……statistics aside.
In this case we have an undisciplined immature me-first egomaniac that has decided that his whims are more important than what his Hall of Fame manager wants out of his players.
This is sad. It’s not going to end well for the sport.
I literally just listed facts.
Oh Bob, you should know better than to list facts here. Everyone that sings TLR’s praises will get their “widdow feewings” hurt. Maybe they should have someone on hand at all times to change their diapers instead. It’s obvious that they are quite soiled.
Then, they’ll go a seismic step further towards the complete death of decorum by using the treatment of a player by a drunk jackass that shouldn’t be managing a peewee team after the things he’s done, as a means to voice their poorly veiled displeasure towards people of color being RIGHTFULLY upset that they don’t receive equal, HUMAN rights. I too would “organize marches and burn down buildings” if I had endured what they have, generation after generation.
I deeply question the humanity of people on here.
@ Palehosed85;
Let me cut to the chase……..
The White Sox have been a disaster playing baseball since Ozzie left. They throw the ball all over the place, mess up on D, run themselves out of innings on the bases. Opponent batters get Little League HR’s on long singles, etc. I’ve seen it. I’ve heard Hawk and Steve lose their temper over it happening again and again.
Ozzie had his problems with Kenny Williams – as he was constantly given big power-hitters that couldn’t make contact most of the time and were disasters in the field. At times Sox players exploded in the clubhouse because they didn’t like this or that – like the time the entire team rebelled because a players son had the run of the clubhouse and field so that had to be stopped as more players sons were upset that they didn’t.
During this rebuild Rick Renteria was brought in to “teach the young players fundamental play”. He was there for 4 years. They continued to play crummy fundamentals – anyone the understands how to play the game knows that. The players just want to stand up and mash, throw the pitches hard, and have a party.
Someone had to put a a stop to that.
LaRussa was selected.
What we have is a one-dimensional player that didn’t make the major leagues until he was 28 years old, deciding that a Hall of Fame manager with 33 years of experience and a history of getting his teams into the playoff’s, WS’s and winning some, has no right messing up his party.
And on this blog we have posters – like you – that think an immoral injustice has been done, so lets rally around and discredit the HOF manager that has been doing that job at a HOF level longer than the 28 year-old first year DH has been on earth.
LaRussa is doing exactly what he was hired to do. Bring professionalism and a winning attitude to an organization that has not had that for well over 15 years. The Sox have been well known to have – in baseball lingo – a “country club atmosphere”. MLB is a billion dollar business. Players make millions and tens of millions. It’s not a recreation center. LaRussa has successfully turned around losing cultures many times. He’s doing it now.
Sooo hiring a manager that connot even “manage” himself well enough to not imbibe alcohol and drive is COMPLETELY okay with you? You know, I’ve lost friends to drunk drivers and guess what happened to the perps? They got the book thrown at them, like they deserved. However, TLR gets nothing but slaps on the wrist in both cases (the ones we know of…), because of he’s a “HaLl oF fAMeR”. Then, he immediately gets hired by our clueless, demented team owner, against the advice of both the FO and staff. It says that if you’re rich, white, and in the right circles, you can go on as many drunken joyrides as you want, free from persecution. At the end of the day, you’ll always have a job!!
I’m not okay with that. I don’t give a damn what he’s done as manager of this team. Go ahead, bludgeon me with all the half-baked reasons why it’s okay. It’s what most other people have done.
If Yermín is in fact going through a situation mentally where he needs to step away and help himself, he should be treated with dignity and respect. I find TLR highly hypocritical, because he sure as hell didn’t have the courage to do that. Oh no, let’s just allow the drunk guy to encourage other pitchers to drill our players. What sound moral logic.
@ Palehosed85
Am awaiting your post on why drug dealers and junkies are getting a raw deal from society.
So LaRussa got caught drunk? Wow! Are you going to ostracize Bruce Springsteen next?
When you take over America you can cut the man’s hands off and staple his mouth shut so that he’ll never drink again.
FYI – I don’t drink or do drugs. And I was a supporter and contributor to MADD for years.
I’m so sorry people are not as perfect as you are.
You’re too good for America. Think about moving to China. You’ll be happier there.
Remember – this is not about baseball. This is about something far larger in scope….it’s an Injustice…an Injustice I tell you!
Loved the “let me cut to the chase.”
Hated—not cutting to the chase.
“Homer: Ah, not a bear in sight. The Bear Patrol must be working like a charm.
Lisa: That’s specious reasoning, Dad.
Homer: Thank you, honey.
Lisa: By your logic, I could claim this rock keeps tigers away.
Homer: Oh, how does it work?
Lisa: It doesn’t work.
Homer: Uh-huh.
Lisa: It’s just a stupid rock!
Homer: Uh-huh.
Lisa: But I don’t see any tigers around here, do you?
Homer: Lisa, I want to buy your rock.
Lisa reluctantly accepts Homer’s money.”
Mercedes Yerminated HIMSELF. The league figured him out and he failed to adjust. Happens all the time in baseball. The Orioles lead in league in getting overly excited about small sample sizes. Or…has Tony La Russa killed their spirits too? This La Russa crap was old in April, now it’s beyond stupid. Folks need to get some mental help over these never-ending fixations. Try to have an independent thought occasionally and quit parroting other people..
La Russa on Mercedes: “I understand you’re in Triple-A, away from big leagues you can get emotional. Don’t know more than that. Will reach out to him. Could be just a little frustrated. I’ll try to explain to him that he has a big league future.”
“It’s over” could mean a lot of things.
Maybe he’s bummed that “Loki” is over until the second season.
I feel ya’, bro.
Our family was also unhappily thinking that last night !
not really out of the blue
https://chicago.suntimes.com/sports-saturday/2021/5/29/22457241/white-sox-yermin-mercedes-has-an-unwritten-rule-to-be-himself-always
Wow. Dude was an unknown, then an absolute monster for a month, then back to an unknown. What a crazy game…
You could see him
spiral downward mentally when he was on the team. First it was the burger and haircut. Then he started wearing all those gold chains. He stopped adjusting his swing when he got two strikes. Then he announced he wanted to be in the home run derby when he had only 4 or 5 home runs. All this while his average was sinking like the Titanic. He couldn’t play the field so he was sent down to work on his catching. I figured he would be a September call up but his defense got worse. Now this stunt. I hope he is retiring. We are in first place. We don’t have time to babysit. He needs time to come back to earth so maybe someone will give him a chance next year.
Bye bye, Yermin.
it’s over . I said that in 1978 high school baseball after the coach pulled me from a game for safely stealing 2b on my own , and then stealing 3b on the next pitch . I didn’t have Instagram to tell so I just told my mom . I thought of myself as Rickey Henderson.
You must have been pretty psychically gifted to think of yourself as Rickey Henderson a year before he debuted in the majors.
If a 28 year old professional baseball player is too mentally weak to handle being admonished for ignoring a take sign, then he has no business being in pro-ball.
Not to mention that he already had a track record of being a problem in the clubhouse. This is a Yermin problem, not a TLR problem.
I love how so many people on here seem to know Tony and Yermin on such a personal level. Not to mention just how it is in the clubhouse. I’m impressed and appreciate all the insight from so many insiders. Tell us all how the other players are in real life please.
Oh, and the dude who typed “Tony Ladrunkass”, that’s friggin hilarious. Did you come up with that all on your own? You’re razor sharp, boss.
If the White Sox don’t want him I’m sure they can find many suitors. A lot of teams are looking for a fat, out-of shape, position-less, clubhouse cancer who swings at every pitch thrown to him.
Mercedes’ days in a White Sox uniform were over and he knew it! This was more of a personal issue then a baseball issue from what I heard from a good source.
It’s tough on a athlete to work hard and get your chance at the show..less alone become a instantly famous in a big league market. Heck they were naming hamburgers after him! I can see why the kid posted what he did…he believes he should still be up. Truth is on this team his role was limited and you can’t have that on a MLB roster. I’m sure he probably didn’t handle the demotion well and probably said trade me..which if I’m a last place team right know and you want to excite the fan base a little…why not.
Interesting how when a white kid from middle America finally makes it to MLB at 28 he’s “gritty” and “living the American dream” but when a guy from the DR does it, the second he shows an emotion he’s a pariah. Got it.
Oh, please. I’d like to see Mercedes handle all the ad hominem garbage that Bryce Harper has taken in stride since he blew a kiss at a pitcher in the minors. He looks pretty white to me. When was Mercedes booed everywhere except in his home field? Harper’s been putting up with that since his rookie year. You must’ve missed the episode where a white guy in the stands in Atlanta was heckling Harper: “You’ll never be as good as Acuna!” — Acuna, who’s from Venezuela.
Mercedes was embraced and celebrated initially, and for a tiny sample of success, but it appeared that his head got too big for his cap and he showed himself to be a selfish, insubordinate player who thought he was bigger than the game (“I play MY game”) and too special to take orders from his manager.
Spare us the race card. It has nothing to do with it. Mercedes appears to be a classic specimen of a guy who believed his own publicity.
Lol. You are comparing the rise of one with the fall of another and trying to make it about race. Based on an anonymous comments section… And I’m responding to you. I imagine we both ought to be doing something more productive.
I remember fans and media members laying it on pretty thick in their criticism of the 3-0 incident. Telling him to learn how to play the game and how evil he was to dare swing on a position player pitching to a 3-0 count. Revisionist history has apparently made LaRussa out to he the villain here.
I like Yermin. Really enjoyed his initial run in MLB. It was fun. But it became clear very fast that his instant fame went to his head. Just watch his first 15-20 games and then see how he conducted himself after that point. His whole focus changed, He went from a guy looking for a hit to a guy who wanted to hit the ball 700 feet. He started bulking up….not physically…but with gold chains. His whole demeanor changed. He seemed to be more concerned about how he looked rather than hitting the ball to the opposite field….being selective at the plate…trying to just get on base. His fame went to his head unfortunately. Plus, MLB pitchers aren’t dumb. They found out how to get him out.
I remember when Tommy LaStella did something similar the year the Cubs won the WS.
It’s an unprofessional IMO.
The stigma of mental health remains. I hope this guy is okay.
Too true. I’ve dealt with it my entire life.
If you get “hurt feefees” as someone put it, you’re somehow a lesser person that’s infantile and needs to toughen up. It’s always the same story, we will never get the same respect, because feelings are apparently weak.
If Yermín is in fact deciding to step away from baseball because he has personal issues that he is trying to deal with, that isn’t weak and he isn’t a crybaby, he has priorities. He is prioritizing his own mental health and, that should be treated with respect and dignity.
Thank you for authoring one of the few intellectually sound comments on here. As someone who has to deal with his own mental health each and every day in order to function, I appreciate your empathy.
@ Palehosed85;
Oh, please…….
So now you’re a mental health expert? Have you met this man? What’s he like?
My closet lifetime friend is a retired psychiatrist. He wouldn’t analyze anyone without sitting down with them for multiple sessions over a period of time.
Tell me the difference between “mental health” and pouting because you can’t get your way. Tell me the difference between being an adult and a child. Tell me how Mr. Yermín has had mental health issues but MLB FO’s have missed that for years.
Did you know that many players have stepped away from the game due to mental health problems. Ever hear of Tony Horton (for one)? All of them kept it quiet and the FO’s kept it out of the media so the players could get on with their life.
A guy going on social media to galvanize support against the meanie manager without him or his agent notifying his employer seems more like a contrived opportunistic move than a man “crying out for help”.
Hey, Samuel, why don’t you shut the … front door. You’re part of the problem. Be well.
Palehose, hang in their my friend. Sounds like you have a strong awareness of your mental well-being and requisite needs -.you’re doing well. Look after yourself, always.
@ 30 Parks;
I think I’m gonna cry.
Can we make a movie about his life? Start a Go Fund me account?
When did MLBTR become Facebook?
What exactly is the “problem” that I’m a part of?
Thanks. I appreciate that very much and I wish the same to you.
Just ignore Samuel, he’s “that guy”. If you stop feeding a parasite, eventually it will find someone else to leech off of. ♂️
But isn’t alcoholism a sickness too?
So a person with one type of sickness should be “understood” and given a chance, while the person with another type of sickness should be vilified and not allowed to work?
I guess just certain lives matter.
Exactly. It’s like how bad we all feel for soldiers who have been traumatized from war, but people who were abused in their childhoods and have known nothing but suffering and trauma for their entire lives are told to “toughen up and move on with their lives” and so on. It’s incredibly strange how so many people pick and choose who to have sympathy or empathy for, based on what they deem to be “legitimate suffering” or whatever… if people can’t see by now that mental health is an extremely serious issue in our society, then I dunno what to tell you. A little more compassion may prevent a few more mass shootings, perhaps.
It’s almost as if there are 7.5 billion people on the planet who all have varying levels of bias and prejudice. It’s unrealistic to expect everyone to care more, but just maybe we can accomplish getting everyone to care a little less. That probably solves some issues as well.
I think that is true and we should all wait to rush to judgement, but mental health isn’t always the same thing as throwing a tantrum. It doesn’t do people with actually serious issues any good to lump every crybaby in with them either. Yet another situation that needs more nuance than an anonymous comments section can provide
You rang?
Don’t you ever get tired of playing the victim? And it turns out…after your whole nonsensical rant, he’s back! Look at that.
I too deal/t with mental health issues. I sought out a medical professional for help, not instagram. But I hope you enjoyed your soapbox and patting yourself on the back!
If another team doesn’t step in and say we’ll take him off your hands for a 18-19 year old prospect….then you’ll know there is more to the story. Teams always need a back up low cost catcher/DH.
Runners on second, Britt Burns in extra innings. Tony forgets a lot of things.
Mercedes should have stayed a catcher, even with a weak arm. He doesn’t hit with enough power to be a DH on a pennant running team. Hasta la vista, your under contract for perpetuity. Can’t even play in a winter league.
He’s got a better arm than Collins or Zavala. Just not good at framing and calling a game.
neither is collins….
Simple as this: Grandal went down and he was not called up to be the backup catcher. Then Eloy was sent to a minor league rehab assignment and the team indicated Eloy would be the primary DH upon his return. Yermin realized he wasn’t coming back. After many years in the minors he might see this as a way out and hope to get released. Tommy LaStella pulled this on the North side a few years ago. He ended up coming to his senses and reported to the minors. Good decision to return as he was eventually able to sucker the Giants into overpaying him.
Thoughts on this:
1. Not hoping for anything bad in his life, but at the same time, hoping there’s more to this than, “That mean coach came down on me once and hurt my feelings!” Regardless of whether you feel TLR was right in coming down on him for missing a sign or in how he handled it (I’m for and against him, respectively), a grown adult ought to be able to have a strong disagreement and still move past it.
2. Tony’s comments didn’t tank Yermin. From the end of April to the end of the Twins’ game everyone loves to bring up, his BA had dropped 50 points and OPS 130. He was already cooling off because pitchers were figuring him out and he was expanding the strike zone. Every hitter goes through it.
3. If this was a “play me or trade me” gambit, it’s arrogant from someone with just one good month in the majors. And the Sox may well have traded him anyway. Plus, you kind of have to be playing for teams to have interest, so an ultimatum would have been better, though still in poor taste.
TLR should’ve handled the situation in the office he’s so proud of having instead of in front of the media, but unless there’s a lot more to Yermin’s reasons, he really needs to grow up.
@ hyraxwithaflamethrower;
As I understand it LaRussa DID handle the issue in his office. He didn’t call a press conference. In fact, days later he didn’t understand what the fuss was about and why the media kept harping on it.
The manager put on a take sign. The player ignored it and celebrated on the field for hitting a HR in a one-sided game against a position player throwing batting practice. The manger called him in and explained why he was sitting the player down – i.e. If one has been stomped on in their life, it’s not a good thing to stomp on another person when they’re hurting. Call it “sportsmanship” or whatever. And most people 28 years-old HAVE been stomped on….long ago.
I’ve made a lot of posts here on this soap opera story. Am sorry to see MLB go the way of the NBA and NFL – but so be it. Watching the play of the field get more and more convoluted was bad enough. Now this.
Am waiting for FO’s to convince owners that they can save money by replacing pitchers with pitching machines programmed by college educated technical people (no more TJ surgeries to pay for). Once that’s done they can save even more money by replacing batters and fielders with programmed machines. They can “look at data” and determine if the ball was hit, and if so what the result of the play was.. Then they’ll have real robots which those smart MBA’s will be in charge of – sort of a clean computer game / rotisserie league totally run by them. When watching on a media device the programmed audience will see the display screen at the ballpark telling them when to make noise. And of course, anyone caught booing one of the machines will be sent to reeducation camps.
Simple—TLR had enough of Yermin and his me first attitude. Why is everyone forgetting that just two Sundays before the 3-0 swing debacle Mercedes was so late to a game that LaRussa had to pull him out of the lineup? How does a professional athlete come late to a game?
LaRussa kept that quiet and didn’t blast him or hang him out to dry. It wasn’t until the “that’s what Yermin does” after swinging on that pitch did LaRussa throw him into the frying pan.
La Russa is a Hall of Famer because he knows how to handle these situations and had no space on the roster for a clearly “me first” player.
Can anyone come up for a reason of Yermin’s “announcement” yesterday other than putting attention back on himself?
Can I ask a practical question at this point?
Will I still be able to get a Yerminator burger from Freddie’s?
Now that’s the important question. They need to do a Burger burger.
I think they may “quit” serving it.
I’m wondering if he is trying to force a trade.
He’s probably miffed that a AAAA catcher was given a position he had a month ago, and knows there really isn’t an immediate path for him to get back to the roster without another injury.
He may have heard rumblings about teams wanting to trade for him, but I take it Hahn has a high asking price.
He has no pathway back to the majors for the foreseeable future, and he only made it to the roster this year because of injury, after taking in minors for years.
This may be the only way to ensure he can get to another team, because the WS could hold him in AAA for years if they wanted, and probably would as an insurance policy.
If he wants out, this is a smart play.
There’s no way the asking price is/was high. I guarantee they would have let him go for any decent haul.
Teams already inquired in offseason, and they said no. His price is probably higher now.
Could be your right.
If he wanted to be traded, he should have requested it directly from the team and in private. Going public like this and in this manner has probably hurt whatever value he had. What team wants to take in the headache and take a chance on a 28 year old garnering more headlines off the field than on?
I don’t know, when I have someone that quits on us with no proper notice, I check the little box that says ‘not eligible for rehire.’ I don’t know how a GM of another team would see this, and do the same research as all of us amateur GMs have done, seen that pattern, and be like – ok let’s trade for him! I mean, maybe at best it doesn’t hurt him but help him? Nah.
A lot of employees who are otherwise solid struggle in environments they don’t find supportive. But in most cases, they can just give notice and find other employment.
Mercedes right now literally has no path to getting back on the major league roster this year, if ever, because they won’t let him catch.
So his option is to toil in AAA, hope he gets traded or cut, or quit.
You can call it selfish all you want, but he has literally no recourse right now if he wants to get back on a roster.
I’m actually surprised more players don’t do this, because there are tons of guys who toil for years in the minors, who earned a shot, but they never get called up because they are blocked or having service time manipulation, or both.
He’s essentially lowering his value so the team has no choice but to get rid of him. That’s the point, because right now, they will likely hold out for a deal they like, or wait until the offseason, which also brings no guarantees.
Don’t forget he raked in 2018 and 2019, when the team had no decent options at DH, and they still gave him no call up, and he got one at bat last season, when EE was clearly toast. He is very aware of his stays with the team, and it’s willingness to just keep him in the minors until they think he’s useful. The White Sox treat many prospects this way.
Bad analogy. The new employer doesn’t get details of what happened with the previous job. Here it’s all out in the open.
Again, if someone else wanted to take a flyer on him in hopes he finds that spring form again, they would make an offer to Hahn. Threatening retirement doesn’t push anything one way or another for those GMs, as they weren’t going to give up much for him in the first place. Fail to see how this changes anything for other GMs.
If anything another week of raking and he might be in the convo as trade bait more so than now.
Cant say I didn’t see this coming. Probably should’ve endeared himself a little more to management. Maybe be grateful someone gave him an opportunity after all the years in the minors…not blow off your manager and be an absolute belligerent, disrespectful, jerk hole about it. Regardless of what you think about “unwritten rules”, don’t ignore your boss, blast him to the media, and expect him to have your back when you struggle. Humble yourself.
This guy has mental health red flags written all over him.
If you can’t do it, then you can’t do it. But unless he’s got feelings that are overwhelming him, it feels like he is passing up a chance to secure his future. He might never be more than a backup, but 4 years of minimum wage, plus pension, at least is a good start for your post-playing career.
I don’t want to seem unsympathetic, but most of us have had bad days/weeks/months at work, and we plow thru it.
This article is kind of garbage. And if you can honestly tell me it has nothing to do with the Cubs writers who run this site go ahead and try. But you can’t.
Try to discredit LaRussa all you want. Where is Theo? Sucks for you….
I mean, they’re echoing what a lot of social media outlets are saying, so I’m unsure as to why MLBTR is the bad guy here.
But of course!
So when does Nike offer him a multi-million dollar contract to endorse their products?
And let’s not discuss how Nike treats their employees around the world.
Is that what MLBtraderumors does now? Share Twitter hot takes?????
The site is run by Cubs fans. There is a conflict of interest here. It’s lame as can be. These fools want to kick me off again so be it. It’s lame and they know it.
I will say it again. This site is run by Cubs fans so this issue is a perfect storm of bias for them. They don’t like the White Sox. They dont like the Cardinals aka LaRussa. This isn’t a story. Not in the way it’s being presented here.
Oh and Brian Robert’s says hi…….
Dude. I began this thread not really liking LaRussa cuz he just seemed a bit arrogant and maybe like he wasn’t very much fun; all while knowing I also had that inner burn against him being a Bravos fan all my life. It’s that rivalry respect/dislike ya get especially from those childhood playoff bouts. But hearing this onslaught of self righteous hypocrites and grown men acting as if other grown men should be shielded from workplace criticism FROM THEIR BOSS is just…everything that’s wrong with this upcoming generation of full grown children lol. Good gosh. Nowhere did I hear anyone consider WHY TLR scolded him so harshly to the media…because if he hadn’t the pitchers would be head hunting their next matchup. If anything he’s protecting the nearly 30 year old rookie. Cheese and rice!
MLB’s marketing crew saw their audience getting older by the year. They were panicked at the prospect of losing a younger audience to football, basketball and even soccer. They made a decision to celebrate “youthful exuberance” (i.e., hot-dogging players putting a whole lot of “I” in team) in the belief that it would make the game more attractive to a younger audience. This is probably part of the current obsession with putting a clock on the game — they think young people don’t have the attention span for a 3-hour game.
Possibly none of those marketing people ever played a team sport on a professional level.
This policy is the reason TLR is pilloried as an old fuddy-duddy despite managing a first-place team. And it should be no surprise that a player like Mercedes thought the game valued loud personalities above teamwork and discipline.
Unfortunately for him, what makes for good promotional material doesn’t always make for success on the field in a team sport. Not saying it’s MLB’s fault that Mercedes apparently can’t cope with failure in a game where failure is the norm: but MLB’s attempt to put more circus into the game surely sent signals to the player that were no help to him when reality grabbed him by the neck. “What am I doing wrong? ‘Let the kids play!’ … right?”
Never mind that you’re not really a kid anymore in your late twenties and early thirties.
It’s one thing having superstars showboating… it’s another thing entirely having Yermin Mercedes showboating. He’s some guy who unspectacularly flopped around the minors for the better part of a decade, didn’t even hit AAA until he was 26, then came up and after having a couple good weeks was walking around like he owned the place. Flair, let the kids play, whatever, that’s fine… but maybe prove you actually belong and have some measurable level of respect for the work it takes to succeed long-term in the majors before strutting around like you’re the second coming of Willie Mays.
Fees
So much LaRussa hate here you would think he turned the White Sox from the ’01 Mariners into the ’03 Tigers. Tony is a tough, old school Manager and the players are responding and the team is successful. Whatever is going on with Mercedes likely has nothing to do with “the incident” in May. If anything Tony and Dusty Baker in Houston and of course Tito in Cleveland are showing that old school still works in Baseball. Did Tony sleep with all of your mothers or something?
Got sent down and realized the grind wasn’t worth his 2 weeks of fame…. Best of luck to him.
Does anyone believe Mercedes won’t be returning? No? I thought so.
Didn’t even take 2 hours after your post.
What do you know, a “kid” who experienced a HUGE high at the very beginning of his career hit some adversity and didn’t handle it well. Sure, maybe LaRussa’s comments bugged him a little, but I’d be willing to guess being sent down was a massive gut punch to him after his early season success. Especially since, whether we agree with all of it or not, he was clearly getting a little bit of a big head. Ignoring the 3-0 take sign was only one thing. He showed other (albeit small) signs of ignoring rules.
I don’t think anything bad of him. This just reminds us that a lot of these guys are still young and immature! They’re human, they have highs and lows. Some handle it better than others. Glad you’re back, especially if you really want to play ball for a living.
He probably couldn’t handle the step down to Charlotte once he tasted success. My guess is he takes the rest of the year off and then signs a 1 year incentive laden deal with Oakland or Tampa Bay
As a hardcore Tampa follower, take him Oakland. He had 2 amazing weeks and then hit below average the rest of the way…
You have absolutely no baseball knowledge if you blame a HOF manager for the mental demise of a 27 year old, one month wonder who cannot play in the field.
Yermin is positioning to be traded from White Sox this is what we call marketing through players feeling — It works in the NBA am not so sure in MLB, but we will see
What is going on
LOL at all the people who jumped to conclusions here. PED suspension. LaRussa “ruined” him. Domestic violence. Mental breakdown. Such a TMZ world now where everyone just rushes to say something, without thinking about how stupid they sound.
For real. This article might be top 5 all time for unfounded bloviation (probably not a word, but whatever) that turned out to be instantly wrong.
Well, he did say his departure was indefinite
Indefinite! You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
My name is Yermin Mercedes. You sent me to the minors. Prepare to watch me fly…home.
Don’t call it a comeback…
Usually takes about three weeks of advance video to find a hitter’s lesser strengths. Maybe the guy can learn to correct the flaws in his swing that teams are exploiting and get on with his career.
Yermin made his point. He is frustrated with how the White Sox handled his situation, particularly not giving him a shot to prove he can stick at catcher, in favor of a guy who isn’t much of a catcher, either, who can’t hit.
He also put himself in a better position to be traded, because he tanked his value.
Had nothing to do with TLR and everything to do with helping him get to a better situation, where he can play.
I don’t think he put himself in a better position to be traded. Quite the opposite. What team wants that kind of drama? Also, with Eloy and Robert coming back, Vaughn can go back to 1B/DH with Abreu, so Yermin didn’t really have a shot anyway, save maybe as backup C. Sox would’ve traded him if they could. Now it seems less likely they find a taker because, as you said, he tanked his value.
A team that is in need of a DH or is willing to see if he can stick at catcher.
MLB is no different than any other league. If a team thinks a player can help them, they will sign the player, so long as the issue at hand is not too significant.
And they got trade inquiries about him in the offseason. Someone is going to take him.
If they put him on waivers, there is no way he would not be claimed. This issue will hardly prevent another team from taking him, especially if hte price is low enough.
He made a point by making a fool of himself? I mean cmon. Better ways of making a point.
It doesn’t work that way. This is the pros. They don’t owe you a chance to you can stick at catcher or anywhere else. When your salary is in the top 1% of the 1%, you have to prove it.
Lol sure. He made his situation “better”.
All immature nonsense aside, the dude is not good enough for mlb. Many players have gotten hot for a few weeks or months, then disappeared. Good luck.
Putting aside the issue of whether TLR was the best hire available to the White Sox, his handling of Mercedes was a dumpster fire. It was clear that before he ever made the majors, Yermin had both unusual talent as a hitter and challenges coping with expectations and being a professional — his track record in the minors screamed those qualities even if organizations that commented on him in ways that tap danced abound those challenges.
Given those struggles handling the emotional component of being a pro, the worst thing TLR could do was what he did by calling him out twice nationally. While Yermin has cooled off somewhat before those incidents from a blazing start that was not sustainable, at that stage the cool stage was pretty brief. Then TLR did something else, less publicized: He benched Yermin far more often after that confrontation than before. Those decisions together were the opposite of how to handle someone like Yermin, and I have little doubt those choices contributed to the length and depth and his tailspin.
He benched him, because his bat fell apart. All this hurt feelings business sounds weak. I’m sure LaRussa would have LOVED to keep writing his name in the lineup, if he had kept hitting. His drop off was major, and swift. People hate LaRussa. So this was an easy way for people to throw something else at him. TLR is the manager. Managing a 1st place team (that’s running away with the division BTW, weak or not). He was hired by a billionaire (championship winning) owner, who knows how to build an organization, more than anyone on this board. I don’t even like LaRussa that much, and I’m definitely not a White Sox fan, but I think he’s done great there, and I think they are a dangerous team moving forward.
This guy needs help.
So I guess we can safely put the TLR debate to bed (on this issue at least) because this was clearly nothing more than a publicity stunt on Mercedes’ part. Nobody at fault but himself.
Why is LaRussa even being brought into this? It has nothing to do with him and everything to do with the league figuring out Mercedes. The league adjusted to Mercedes, Mercedes didn’t adjust to the league. News flash, Mercedes is not that good, there’s a reason he’s been in the minors until now. The beginning of the year was a great story but that’s exactly what it is ….a story. Now let’s focus on the real task at hand and that’s trying to win a championship
Not sure if that’s a question for the author (me) or just to commenters/fans in general. From an MLBTR standpoint, I opted not to even mention the La Russa speculation at first because it was precisely that: speculation (from a largely biased group).
I ultimately elected to at least acknowledge it after La Russa himself commented on the situation and, in doing so, alluded to the criticism he was receiving.
I was critical of the La Russa hiring at the time, but I generally find the “La Russa ruined him” and especially the “La Russa pushed him away from the game” narratives that were going on to be seismic reaches. I don’t think La Russa handled the missed take sign well — I believe a manager should have his players’ backs — but to suggest that would somehow drive Mercedes from the game is beyond extreme.
As to those claiming this is a publicity stunt intended to draw attention, I also wouldn’t presume that. These players are human beings, and we never know what’s going on in their heads. Mercedes will obviously be chastised for this turnaround, but the only takeaway that I have is that I hope he’s OK and healthy both physically and mentally.
The past year-plus has been difficult on people from all walks of life for various reasons; we’d all do well to remember that — especially in cases like this where we have almost none of the information that would be necessary to put together an informed opinion.
I’m sure I’ll regret giving my two cents, but there you have it all the same. Be well, everyone.
I appreciate the comment and well-balanced take, Steve!
Yes. The last 2 years have been tough for a lot of people. Maybe TLR as well.
A rookie blowing off and ignoring a sign should be chastised. Mercedez handled the 3-0 incident far worse than LaRussa.
Didn’t I see this whole thing on a Seinfeld episode? George quits, then comes back acting as if he never quit at all.
Only George was funny.
Great reference! That was a hilarious episode!
Yeah well, the jerk store called and you’re their all time best seller!!
Yeah? Well I had sex with your wife!
“Only George was funny”? Go watch friends. You have lost all credibility.
It’s also based on Larry David doing it in real life when he was a writer on SNL.
All this drama over a ten year minor leaguer who had six good weeks and possibly is a flash in the pan. Honestly when Eloy and Robert return and with the emergence of Vaughn theres no room on the roster for him to take at bats away from them. The more a guy faces a team the more likely they are to figure out the holes in his swing and it looks like everybody’s figured out the holes in his swing. Baseball is a game of adjustments and he has not been able to adjust, Must be some reason why he is a 10 year minor leaguer
He needs to make up his mind.
Wow, what a winner. “It’s over”……yes I’m afraid so. Doubtful if he is brought up again.
Yeah, but he balanced it out by saying “I love everybody…”. That’s a winner statement, too, right?
This Mercedes guy is 28 with a teenager’s mentality. Guess his little tantrum is over…for now.
What a baby
He prodigal son returns, did he ever really leave? He took his bat and ball and went home, hope he did not forget to bring them back. Maybe he returned for Sammy Sosa’s boom box on the wrong side of town.
Dudes a bum seriously never give him another AB. Crybaby
Lmfao this dude needs to lay off what he’s putting in his body! Or maybe needs a snickers. Or maybe needs to just plan old grow up. Idk but not a good thing to have around a clubhouse when your team is pushing towards the ultimate goal.
Plain*
Lol “bizarre turnabout”. Come on mlbtr, you can do better. This was a stunt for attention, and y’all gave him his attention.
The only thing “bizarre” is that the media types consistently fall for such nonsense.
Team Tony on this one. Yermin doesn’t have the maturity to be a major league professional. Kid is on a 2 strike count. Ignoring signs and this faux retirement.
I was about to type, “enjoy your retirement”, but Mercedes returned before I could post my comment. “Welcome back, Yermin!”
Lol
Of course he’s back… no one who loves baseball and is incredibly good at it would ever abandon it as a career.
Excactly right
So he threw a pity party, pathetic
Don’t hate, let him germinate, so he can yerminate again.
Somewhere, right now, someone is working on an adult film called The Sperminator.
The truth is this! Eloy Jimenez is coming back in the next week or so and he is primary role is going to be the White Sox’s Designated Hitter. There is no room for Mercedes to play on the White Sox’s MLB roster. Odds are the White Sox trade for nothing or just release him.
My eyes just rolled so hard they almost popped outta my head.
Good to see him back. Hopefully he’ll have a mentor assigned that will assist when future hurdles come to the front.
I question how much time and energy a MLB team will utilize for a 28 year old.
If a 28 yr old requires a mentor, maybe baseball isn’t for him?
Mannywood is back!
“I’ll reach out to him and see what’s going on. It could be he’s just feeling frustrated. … I’ll try to explain to him he’s got a big league future.” – Tony La Russa
Looks like that did the trick! Welcome back Mercedes!
He came back under one condition, to be traded ASAP.
Thank you White Sox!! I’m in a better place than your city or organization….thanks again for setting me free on my Hall of fame career.
Amazing, there are more comments on this thread than any story on the Sox I’ve seen all year. And if it were not for the internet, news of this would not have even gotten out to the media in time… he would have changed his mind before anybody knew he thought about retiring. And nobody would be talking about this, which is really about nothing of any importance.
I had my eye on his numbers in the minors and wanted to see him in the bigs. He should focus on nothing but 1B and hitting, because he will never a catcher in the bigs. However, as a hitter, he has unable to adjust,period. Like him or not, we like winning more.