A quick word about Jack Flaherty's turbulent relationship with Cardinal Nation
Let's talk about the uncomfortable stuff too.
If only baseball players were just baseball players, like athletic robots that human fans could tailor to their preference. Dress, speak, look, all of it with a few pokes at a phone screen. Along with throwing a complete game on 86 pitches, they would say all the right things, politically and personally. It would wash over the TV screen and radio frequency like a cold cloth on a hot day.
The truth is fans care too much about players, the professional baseball employees of a Major League team. They care so much that it makes the players feel like a square peg being jammed into a circle slot. Somewhere along the line, it gets messy.
Enter Jack Flaherty and the fanbase of the St. Louis Cardinals. Nicknamed the best fans in baseball by The Sporting News long ago, Cardinal Nation carries the passion of a thousand burning suns. If you haven’t produced lately, then you’re as worthless as the moment before your first at-bat standing ovation. Sad but true.
The conversation around Flaherty, who avoided arbitration with a new contract for 2023, intensified this weekend when he got emotional while taking about Adam Wainwright’s final season. Yeah, for some reason, the hate talk around a guy that the team is leaning on to be great this year got crazy after he showed humility.
It’s like the production of a team has lived into a hellbent high rise above our lives. If he doesn’t pitch well enough, then his opinions on social media shouldn’t matter. That’s more accurate of MANY fans than one would like to believe. So, I would like to go around town and find out who sucked at their job today, thus removing all Facebook and Twitter posting abilities. Does that work for you?
True: Flaherty hasn’t reached the potential of his thrilling 2019 second half performance. The dude was electric, like Holliday after July in 2009.
False: Jack and John Mozeliak engage in fencing face-offs in front of the California Pizza Kitchen every other Tuesday during the regular season. Flaherty as the young apprentice and Mozeliak as the older swordsman.
Imagine Mo’s “Bueller” drawl when reprising a line from Batman Begins: At the end of the day, Bruce… when you think about it, your parents death wasn’t your fault.”
True: It’s quite alright for a human being to express his beliefs on his own time and profile, unless the Cardinals actually prohibit that--which they clearly don’t.
False: At the age of 27, there’s no chance Flaherty can get his career back on ace course, and contend for the Cy Young the next 5-10 seasons.
True: Flaherty would like to pitch in Los Angeles, very near his birthplace and mom. Can’t fault a boy who wants to pitch near his momma.
True: Like it or not, we’re living in a red state and St. Louis has plenty of MAGA-driven voters. A modest portion of those voters can be found spewing hate at the pitcher on Twitter. It doesn’t take a long scroll to see this politically-fuel hate on social media.
*Attention, I’m not (ahem) saying ALL republican/Trump voting Cardinals fans carry these thoughts and intentions, but that it is a very real thing in this city.*
In other words, our town is still very much racially divided. Flaherty’s politics bash up against those opposing views clearly, and that does have an effect on how certain fans view his results--especially if he is injured or struggling to pitch to potential. I’d like for this to be untrue, but it’s an unavoidable reality.
Here’s the thing. There needs to be a world where Flaherty can be himself, and also be a starting pitcher for the Cardinals. The injury bug affects more than a few players, including the very talented ones. Flaherty has a lot of talent, but needs health and focus to put together a season-long success.
For his career, Flaherty has started 98 games and compiled impressive statistics: a 3.41 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, and 600 strikeouts to just 188 walks. He doesn’t allow a lot of home runs. But in his 98 starts (4 relief appearances) and 523 total innings, Flaherty has only averaged 5.3 innings per start.
That is what needs to improve. I don’t care what he talks about on Twitter. EVERYONE should be allowed to have a voice. We all hold back. We do. Few if any put all of themselves, especially the dirty parts, on social media. But the result is really the engine that moves this boat across water.
You’re not changing Cardinal Nation, and 99% of other fan bases, when it comes to performance on the field versus political discussion off the field. Until a larger portion of fans can separate the player from the person, this will continue.
And I do think Flaherty ends up pitching for the Dodgers. That’s where it’s all heading, great season on the mound or not.
Photo Credit: Charlie Marlow/590 The Fan
Flaherty needs to spend more time on traditional baseball training and rehabilitation than doing what his Agent tells him to do.
Had he rehabbed after his injury, instead of refusing as his Agent told him, he may have actually lasted more than 1 1/2 innings.
I hope he pitches well so The Cardinals can trade him.
Carlin Dead but not giving a shit about politics, shit the fuck up and pitch