World Series champion pitcher Jonathan Papelbon ripped L.A. Angels player Jonathan Rendon as lazy and lacking in dedication after Rendon said in a recent interview that his wife and kids take priority over pro baseball.
Papelbon, a six-time All-Star pitcher with the Boston Red Sox and who played on the Washington Nationals with Rendon in 2016, blasted Rendon, who Papelbon says “doesn’t give a shit” about baseball, Fox News reported.
Rendon has not played in more than half the team’s games each season since joining the Angels in 2020, mostly due to injuries despite his seven-year, $245 million contract. He has played 200 games since 2020, hit a .249, and has 23 home runs.
Anthony Rendon is #6 of the Los Angeles Angels in the seventh inning at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on May 09, 2022, in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
But the anti-Trump Rendon raised eyebrows on Monday, Feb. 19, when he said that now that he is married and has children, baseball is not quite as important as it was when he was in his 20s.
“This is a job,” Rendon exclaimed. “I do this to make a living. My faith, my family comes first before this job.”
“It’s a lot different. I’m married. I have four kids,” he added. “My priorities have changed since I was in my early 20s. So, definitely, my perspective on baseball has been more skewed.”
These comments set off Papelbon, it appears.
Speaking on an episode of Foul Territory, Papelbon unloaded on Rendon and insisted that Rendon’s “baseball last” attitude is a “cancer in the clubhouse.”
“Every single day this guy shows up to go out, it was like a chore,” the ex-MLB star said. “He strictly got away with just raw athleticism and just raw talent. And you can do that … but there’s a reason why he’s not as successful as he really, truly could be.”
Papelbon added, “He’s got more raw talent than the three of us combined, but he just doesn’t give a shit.”
Papelbon concluded by saying that Rendon is essentially ripping off the angels.
“I knew that when he became a free agent … I was like, ‘whoever gets that dude is going to get totally bamboozled; it’s going to be the worst deal in history,’” Papelbon griped. “And it’s proven that way.”
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