Hammered By Cubs
Hammered By Cubs, The Cubs’ parting gift to Jeff Samardzija might have long-term benefits for him.Like Jon Lester, Samardzija got a taste of what playing for another organization was like as he was traded last July 5 to the Athletics and completed the 2014 season in Oakland before he was dealt last December to the Chicago White Sox.
“It was cool when you go to a different place and you see how you adjust as a person and get thrown at the bottom of the totem pole, and everyone knows each other and you’re coming into a foreign situation so you learn a lot about yourself and how you are as a baseball player,” Samardzija said last week. “That’s the common denominator in it all, and it gives you a different personality, a thicker skin.
“That was the other cool thing, coming to a new team and they haven’t seen me pitch, and they’re excited to watch you. There’s that certain edge that makes you want to get off to a fast start because you want to impress your new teammates. It’s fun just to see all the side things that happen along, which is playing the game. It’s a wild experience, but it’s definitely good to go through.”
Samardzija will face the Cubs – the team that drafted him in 2006 and developed him into a front-line starter – Friday in an exhibition game at Sloan Park.Samardzija says he wasn’t surprised by the Cubs’ flurry of big moves since he departed, from the acquisition of manager Joe Maddon to Lester.
“You don’t know what the plans are,” Samardzija said. “You’re not in the meetings. You just do your job and go with the flow.”
Furthermore, Samardzija hasn’t stopped to wonder what it would be like if the Cubs hadn’t traded him.“I turn the page, and it’s all about that day,” Samardzija said. “What’s going on that day and what we need to do to make today as good as possible. I knew going into last season I was going to have a couple of tumultuous years and a lot of uncertainties. For me, it was all about making sure the baseball side of me was ready to go and ready to compete, no matter what jersey I was wearing.”
Barring an injury, Samardzija is likely to receive a massive contract a year after Lester, Max Scherzer and James Shields received stunning deals. But he’s not aiming solely to match those contracts.
“I’m not looking for top dollar,” Samardzija said. ”For me, it’s good to see those guys are compensated. But I think if you look at maybe outside of Shields, who maybe didn’t get his first choice, you look at Jon and Max and couple other guys, the big thing for them is they went somewhere they wanted to go to, and they were excited about where they were going to.
“So for me, it’s about taking this time to watch other teams, watch everything essentially and soak it all in. A lot of things change in a year, so when you’re in that situation, it’s a long-term commitment you’re making, so you want to make sure it’s the right one.’’
Samardzija was among the least surprised that Lester – his Oakland teammate for two months – signed with the Cubs.
“I knew he and Theo (Epstein) had a great relationship,” Samardzija said. “I knew things hadn’t gone that well with how he departed Boston. But I also knew a guy like that was highly sought after, so there’s a lot of landing spots for him.
“Ultimately, how Theo talked about him and how he mentioned him, I knew they had a great relationship. So I wasn’t surprised.”
“It was cool when you go to a different place and you see how you adjust as a person and get thrown at the bottom of the totem pole, and everyone knows each other and you’re coming into a foreign situation so you learn a lot about yourself and how you are as a baseball player,” Samardzija said last week. “That’s the common denominator in it all, and it gives you a different personality, a thicker skin.
“That was the other cool thing, coming to a new team and they haven’t seen me pitch, and they’re excited to watch you. There’s that certain edge that makes you want to get off to a fast start because you want to impress your new teammates. It’s fun just to see all the side things that happen along, which is playing the game. It’s a wild experience, but it’s definitely good to go through.”
Samardzija will face the Cubs – the team that drafted him in 2006 and developed him into a front-line starter – Friday in an exhibition game at Sloan Park.Samardzija says he wasn’t surprised by the Cubs’ flurry of big moves since he departed, from the acquisition of manager Joe Maddon to Lester.
“You don’t know what the plans are,” Samardzija said. “You’re not in the meetings. You just do your job and go with the flow.”
Furthermore, Samardzija hasn’t stopped to wonder what it would be like if the Cubs hadn’t traded him.“I turn the page, and it’s all about that day,” Samardzija said. “What’s going on that day and what we need to do to make today as good as possible. I knew going into last season I was going to have a couple of tumultuous years and a lot of uncertainties. For me, it was all about making sure the baseball side of me was ready to go and ready to compete, no matter what jersey I was wearing.”
Barring an injury, Samardzija is likely to receive a massive contract a year after Lester, Max Scherzer and James Shields received stunning deals. But he’s not aiming solely to match those contracts.
“I’m not looking for top dollar,” Samardzija said. ”For me, it’s good to see those guys are compensated. But I think if you look at maybe outside of Shields, who maybe didn’t get his first choice, you look at Jon and Max and couple other guys, the big thing for them is they went somewhere they wanted to go to, and they were excited about where they were going to.
“So for me, it’s about taking this time to watch other teams, watch everything essentially and soak it all in. A lot of things change in a year, so when you’re in that situation, it’s a long-term commitment you’re making, so you want to make sure it’s the right one.’’
Samardzija was among the least surprised that Lester – his Oakland teammate for two months – signed with the Cubs.
“I knew he and Theo (Epstein) had a great relationship,” Samardzija said. “I knew things hadn’t gone that well with how he departed Boston. But I also knew a guy like that was highly sought after, so there’s a lot of landing spots for him.
“Ultimately, how Theo talked about him and how he mentioned him, I knew they had a great relationship. So I wasn’t surprised.”
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Hammered By Cubs
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