Hey Grady? I think it's time to call it quits

Oh you oft-injured Grady, you...
Photo Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

In case you haven't heard, news surfaced today that Grady Sizemore hit yet another setback in his rehabilitation process.


Okay, so Indians Head Trainer Lonnie Soloff didn't exactly call it a "setback" per se, but in coach speak he did. If, as Tribe manager Manny Acta said, "The process has been slowed down a little bit," that most definitely isn't encouraging news as to when Sizemore will be available to play.

Sizemore has now spent over 60 days on the DL and can be activated whenever the Indians want to do it. But, as it was reported today, apparently the guy can't run. He's done hitting and throwing, but he can't run without pain.

Yes, fellow Indians fans, $5 million of the Indians payroll is being sucked up by Sizemore—a guy who can't even freaking run!


Let's face it, I wrote back in February that any realistic picture of Sizemore being healthy for a full season would be maybe 120ish games with perhaps 20ish HRs and 70 RBI. But now? Heaven only knows what Sizemore could contribute if he ever can mangage to pick himself off the DL.

Soloff said today that it would be "unreasonable and unfair" to set a timetable for Sizemore to make his first appearance on the Indians big league roster, but he's still "optimistic" that Grady can contribute in 2012.

...Really?

So if there's no timetable, Sizemore had a setback, the last "optimistic" outlook the team told us said he could be back by the All-Star break, when in the wide world of sports is this guy going to play?! August? And even when he comes back, how much is he going to play—three times a week?

In my mind, that's just unacceptable for someone being paid $5 million this year.

Again, let's be real, Sizemore is never going to be anything close to the player he once was. He can't even run for goodness sake! Frankly, I'm sick of hearing about how the organization is going to be patient with Grady, how he's working very hard to get back with the team, blah, blah freaking blah.

So you know what? Sizemore should just save himself and the Indians all the trouble and just call it a career. I don't want to say that at this point he's embarrassing himself, but it's just sad to see that his career has degenerated into this.

You know the last time this guy went through a full season healthy? 2008. Two-thousand, freaking eight! I was a sophomore in high school the last time Sizemore had a full, productive season. That's just...wow.

The next year, Sizemore struggled through elbow problems before calling it a season in late August to have surgery on it so he could recover in time for Spring Training in 2010. But, that year he only played—wait for it—33 games. Last season, Grady played in a stunning 71 games, in which he hit 32 extra-base hits including 10 homers, 21 doubles and a triple.

So, okay, the Indians were hoping for the Sizemore who hit 10 homers and 21 doubles in 2011 would be able to do that for the whole year, but they gave someone who missed 91 games due to injury last season freaking $5 million for this season. Five million dollars to rehab. Between Sizemore and Hafner, the Indians currently have $18 million dollars invested in two guys that can't stay on the field.

For the money the Indians spent on Sizemore, Hafner, "Fausto Carmona," and Jake Westbrook, we could at least still have CC Sabathia and Victor Martinez. And I know the contracts for the now-Hernandez and Sizemore aren't the same ones they signed when the Indians invested in them years ago, but the sentiment still applies.

So there's that. And there's the most fragile of all the fragile, Grady Sizemore, hitting and throwing but not running.

I know it's tough and I know you want to play, but Grady?

Just save us all the trouble and call it quits.

~MAS