Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Ask and ye shall receive: Gagne is gone

Eric Gagne's comeback attempt with the Dodgers is over. Gagne asked for and was granted a release of his contract, only a short amount of time after agreeing to go to the minors.

Apparently he had a change of heart.

It's not surprising that any of this happened. He only pitched in 2 2/3 innings this spring, but had a monstrous 20.25 ERA, with six runs allowed on eight hits. And it's also not a surprise that Gagne would rather roll the dice on getting picked up by another big league club.

While reuniting with his old club looked like a good idea on paper, I can't say I'm exactly heartbroken that it didn't work out. All Dodger fans will never forget the incredible run he had in his prime, as he rewrote the record books for closing out games.

Then his arm starting giving him problems, and it was all downhill from there. The biggest blow, in my opinion anyway, was being on the Mitchell Report. Yes, I know he can get in line with the countless other drug addicts that were exposed, but it still left a bad taste in my mouth.

Ultimately, Gagne went from being a Dodger hero to just another guy in the long run, much like Paul Lo Duca. And that, my friends, is truly a shame.

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