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The report added that “at least one coach responded heatedly to Dipoto” and that Pujols “challenged Dipoto in the meeting, saying the coaches are working as hard to prepare players as they did last season, but that the roster is not nearly as strong as it was a year ago,” when the Angels went 98-64.
“I didn't say that,” Pujols said. “I've been in this game for 16 years. I would never disrespect a team.”
Does Pujols deny that he exchanged words with Dipoto?
“That's none of your business,” he said. “Whatever happens in the clubhouse stays in the clubhouse.”
Two people familiar with the meetings but not authorized to speak publicly about them confirmed that the gist of the Foxsports.com report is accurate. Dipoto declined to comment Monday night and Tuesday.
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tkihshbt wrote:
The report added that “at least one coach responded heatedly to Dipoto” and that Pujols “challenged Dipoto in the meeting, saying the coaches are working as hard to prepare players as they did last season, but that the roster is not nearly as strong as it was a year ago,” when the Angels went 98-64.
“I didn't say that,” Pujols said. “I've been in this game for 16 years. I would never disrespect a team.”
Does Pujols deny that he exchanged words with Dipoto?
“That's none of your business,” he said. “Whatever happens in the clubhouse stays in the clubhouse.”
Two people familiar with the meetings but not authorized to speak publicly about them confirmed that the gist of the Foxsports.com report is accurate. Dipoto declined to comment Monday night and Tuesday.
Sounds like the Angels are about to fire their htting coach again.
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This sounds almost like the Luhnow/Jocketty feud. DiPoto wants more reliance on stats and Scioscia manages based on instinct.
Of course the biggest problem Anaheim has isn't mentioned--Arte Moreno. If Moreno hadn't insisted upon stupid contracts like the ones given to CJ Wilson, Josh Hamilton and, until this season, Pujols, Anaheim might be in a better position than it is today.
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Looks like Scioscia won the war ...
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"If Moreno hadn't insisted upon stupid contracts like the ones given to CJ Wilson, Josh Hamilton and, until this season, Pujols ..."
Not to mention Gary Matthews Jr.
The animosity seems to go a little deeper than mere differences in philosophy. Scioscia appears to be actively ignoring (is that an oxymoron?) information that's provided to him by the scouting department, via the general manager's office.
Dipoto should have been smarter. Scioscia bought himself eternity as Moreno's Rasputin in 2002. Unless Dipoto was so tired of losing faceoffs to the manager that this is his exit strategy. And if that's true, I'm not sure I could blame him. Absent the brilliance of Mike Trout, the Angels are a very mediocre baseball team. The primary reason they're in second place is because the three teams below them stink. And now it sounds like Pujols' tendencies toward assholery have been re-ignited by the return of his power stroke.
Last edited by artie_fufkin (7/01/2015 2:06 pm)
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artie_fufkin wrote:
Looks like Scioscia won the war ...
Wow. Must've been a totally toxic situation.
Back in the day, I would have sided with Jocketty in the Jocketty/Luhnow dispute, but time has shown that it's foolish to ignore the statistical data that's available. I would argue that it's also a mistake to be overly-reliant on statistical data, but anyone who simply ignores available information is not very smart.
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Kudos to Pujols. Named to the AL All-Star team and will start for Cabrera. Leading the AL with 25 HR.