Chicago Cubs' Alfonso Soriano confident despite apparent adversity – MLB News
The Chicago Cubs’ hitter Alfonso Soriano on Tuesday, February 28, dismissed to get carried away by the boos he had to hear during the batting session at Mesa, Arizona. The jeers and boos that came his way whenever he misplayed any ball might well be overwhelming
or intolerable, the player however, has a big smile.
"They don't see me as a baseball player," Soriano said. "They see me as the contract. They don't see my heart, nothing like that. That's what it is. I know I have a big heart."
There is reason why Soriano has to undergo what a player will otherwise detest and shun. The Cubs had signed the player for eight years in a deal that was worth $136 million. Soriano might not have lived up to their expectations.
That is something that even the players within the team accept. Marlon Byrd, the team’s outfielder, for example, sheds light on this aspect. He maintains that with a big deal like this, expectations are huge and the fans will like to see the player in the
top 10 in the MVP every year.
Byrd also draws an interesting comparison here. In his view, it will be ever interesting to see how Albert Pujols performs once he starts this season after the big deal. Nonetheless, Byrd does refer to the fact that even Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees
has always been booed.
"Once you get that contract, it happens," Byrd said. "'Sori' is used to the boos and it doesn't bother him. It's all worth it when he gets those cheers, and that's what he loves. When he hits that big home run and goes to the outfield and the entire left
field is applauding him and bowing to him.”
Despite all that has been said about Soriano, he has remained, or tried to remain, consistent in his games. The past season, for example, the player had 28 home-runs to his credit and scored over 80 runs. With a performance as good as that, it will be interesting
to see what kind of treatment he is meted out this season.
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