Chicago White Sox pitcher Chris Sale delivered on Tuesday what some have labeled an apology for his embarrassing incident over the weekend, but it was really anything but.
In an interview with Scott Merkin of MLB.com, Sale said he has “regret” over the way he handled himself before he was scheduled to start on Saturday.
“I have regret, because I play 33 times a year at most in the regular season. So I put a lot of emphasis on when I play and I take a lot of pride in work that I do,” he said. “When I can’t or don’t do that, yeah, I have disappointment in myself for not being there for my guys.”
That’s pretty much where the “apology” ended. Sale, who reportedly took the liberty of cutting up some throwback jerseys with a knife so the team could not wear them, said he made it clear in Spring Training that he did not want to wear the 1976 White Sox throwback uniform while pitching. He described them as “uncomfortable and unorthodox,” noting that he would not feel right pitching with an untucked jersey.
Since the White Sox wanted to wear the uniforms anyway, Sale took that as a sign that the team cared more about marketing than winning games.
“When I saw that there was something in the way of that 100 percent winning mentality, I had an issue,” he explained. “I tried to bring it up and say, ‘Hey listen, these are my thoughts and concerns,’ and they got pushed away because of the business deal that was set in place. I’ll never understand why we need to do something on the business side on the field that might impede us winning a game.”
Sale then decided to specifically call out White Sox manager Robin Ventura.
“Robin is the one who has to fight for us in that department,” he said. “If the players don’t feel comfortable 100 percent about what we are doing to win the game, and we have an easy fix — it was as easy as hanging up another jersey and everyone was fine. For them to put business first over winning, that’s when I lost it.”
While Sale said he regrets putting his teammates in a difficult position, he mentioned nothing about throwing a temper tantrum and destroying team equipment.
“Do I regret standing up for what I believe in? Absolutely not,” he said. “Do I regret saying business should not be first before winning? Absolutely not.”
There’s something to be said for handling things in a professional manner, especially when you make millions of dollars in your profession. Even if Sale had a point, he deserves every bit of ridicule — like these fantastic memes — that he gets. Throwing a temper tantrum and cutting up a jersey is something you would expect from a 13-year-old.
