Chipper Jones goes off on Jamie Moyer after accusation of stealing signs
The Braves overcame a six-run deficit on Saturday to beat the Rockies, 13-9, thanks largely to a five-RBI game by Chipper Jones. But Jamie Moyer provided some added drama to the contest when he accused Jones of relaying signs to batters at home plate. Jones took exception to Moyer’s allegations, as both players were seen exchanging choice words during the fifth inning.
“That was all on Jamie Moyer,” Jones said, per MLB.com. “He woke a sleeping giant tonight. He started chirping and it went all downhill from there. He accused me of relaying a sign down 6-2 with a 3-0 count to Brian McCann. I have never relayed a sign to anyone while I’m on second base.
“You question our integrity, that’s wrong. I’ve never accused him of doctoring a baseball. I’ve never accused him of over-milligraming, nothing. That’s [garbage] and he woke us up. I didn’t see any signs on the 900-foot homers that were hit.”
(Ed. note: We have no clue what the hell “over-milligraming” is. We suspected Chipper created the word out of thin air, but a commenter says it has to do with PED use.)
“I don’t know what the problem was,” Jones added. “I was literally having a conversation with the shortstop when he stepped off and said that. I don’t know why he’s so paranoid. But to be honest with you, every pitch he throws is 78 [mph]. So it’s not like we really have to relay signs.”
Shots fired! But wait: Much like in the Saturday’s game, when Chipper got going, he got going. Here’s more from his postgame Moyer harangue, via Big League Stew:
Chipper said he told a couple Rockies he would discuss things w/ Moyer if he wanted to meet him in the hallway last night.
— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) May 6, 2012
Chipper said he believes Moyer is paranoid because he formerly played for a team, the Phillies, who are known for stealing signs.
— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) May 6, 2012
Other than the threats of things escalating into being part of the Mayweather-Cotto undercard, this is just your typical jawing back and forth between two competitive, veteran guys. But given Moyer’s age, it’s hard not to suspect he’s becoming an ornery, “damn kids, get off my lawn” old guy sooner than we think.
Photo credit: Mark J. Rebilas-US PRESSWIRE
