Jason Giambi Gets a Hit
The Yankees have won six straight, but more meaningful, in a way, was the fact that
Jason Giambi was one-for-four with a single last night.
Let me explain.
Giambi is the first baseman the Yankees signed as a free agent for a whopping amount of money—something like $120 million over eight years. He was, at the time, a slugger who hit for average and power. I liked the fact that he had a great eye; Giambi had the best sense of the strike zone of any Yankee since Don Mattingly, and he really made pitchers work. That seemed in keeping with the great Yankee teams of the late '90s.
Then it all fell apart. Giambi missed almost all of last season with mysterious illnesses. Over the off-season, it was revealed that he'd admitted steroid use to a San Francisco grand jury.
Strangely, Giambi was vilified in the New York papers. I say strangely because, to look at Giambi, it shouldn't have been a surprise that he was juiced; the man's body had transformed from his mid- to his late-twenties. The Yankees must have been aware that steroids were a serious possibility.
But more important, Giambi was hardly the only player to take steroids. Hello, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Bobby Bonds? None of them have suffered anything near the level of abuse directed at Giambi—which makes me think that Giambi's real crime was admitting it. Now when Giambi plays in opposing stadiums, opposing fans chant, "Ster-roids! Ster-roids!" (Particularly in Fenway Park, which amuses me; as if no Red Sox player ever took steroids...)
The thing about Giambi is, by all accounts, he's a very decent guy. He's really tried to come back from this debacle with patience, a good attitude, and a lot of hard work. So far, it's not working. He's struggling at the plate, barely swinging, and striking out a ton whether he swings or not. He's clearly having mental problems, and it's painful to watch, in the same way that second baseman
Chuck Knoblauch's throwing problems were.
Last night he was 0-for-3 until an 8th-inning single, and as he rounded first base, you could feel his relief through the television screen.
Jason Giambi is trying to make up for his mistakes. Everyone with a heart—and an awareness that in his place, we might have committed the same sin—should be hoping he succeeds.
