So Many Feelings About the Addison Russell News, They’re All Ok
I have had a very straight-lined reaction to Addison Russell and everything circling around him, his ex-wife Melisa Reidy, and baseball’s actions towards him. After reading Reidy’s blog, I immediately jumped to her side. There was too much realness in the lines she wrote, I saw too much pain in the words she wrote, and how she would remove herself by using the thrid-person in areas struck me as someone that still denied what had happened to her by compartmentalizing it. Almost like it was a different person that it was happening to.
I saw that and immediately thought Russell had no place on the Cubs any longer, and had no place in baseball any longer. Playing the game of baseball, at a professional level, is a privilege and not a right. Playing any professional sport is a privilege, and not a right.
Look what happened in the Kareem Hunt situation. Now, I know this is different. There is a video which shows the altercation, but I was looking for the Cubs to cut ties with Russell back in September like the Kansas City Chiefs did with Hunt.
Then the offseason begun, unexpectedly, and Theo Epstein had this to say on Russell.
“Clearly we support Major League Baseball’s finding and Addy’s decision to accept the suspension,” he said. “It concludes MLB’s investigation into this matter as well. My thoughts on it are that, domestic violence is everyone’s problem and because of that, we all have an obligation to be part of the solution as well. Discipline, in a case like this, is part of the solution going forward, and so we support Major League Baseball’s decision and we think it’s appropriate.
“But prevention is also a big part of the solution and maybe a more important part of the solution. And so now that the Major League Baseball investigation is over, I think it’s our obligation as a club and my obligation to see what we can do better going forward, to see what we can do to prevent this from ever happening again, to reach out to the victim in this case and try to learn from it and try to give her support. To talk to Addy and give Addy the necessary support so that he can get the help that he needs and make sure nothing like this ever happens again.
“And as a club to see if there’s something that we can do positively for our players, for spouses, families, to be part of the solution, and make sure we’re not in this situation ever again. So that’s how I’m looking at it as we move into this next phase.”
Theo’s response all but confirmed what happened between Russell and Reidy. Proclaiming “domestic violence is everyone’s problem,” and talking about how to prevent it in the future. These are statements made by someone that knows there’s guilt. This, again, reinforced my thought that Russell shouldn’t spend another day as a Chicago Cub.
But the offseason roared on, or well politely meowed, until Friday, November 30th. That is when the Cubs and Russell released a dual statement, and the Cubs revealed that they were tendering Russell a non-guaranteed contract for the 2019 season.
I have to tell you, that statement was positive. Now, the real work has yet to be done. Sure Russell has begun therapy, both on his own accord and MLB directed therapy. But this is during the offseason where he doesn’t have travel concerns. He isn’t in the middle of a 1-22 stretch at the plate. He hasn’t experienced the highs of winning a game in the last at bat or the lows of striking out with men on base and the chance to win. Right now, all he has to do is prepare for the 2019 season, and go to therapy.
I commend him for what he has done, and the help he is seeking. I have reservations that this will help.
I used to be a huge Russell fan. I still think, physically and tools-wise, Russell is the best defensive shortstop on the Cubs. He just might have the best tool set as a defensive shortstop in all baseball. His positioning might be the best in baseball. His ability to track a ball, and then receive it is one of the smoothest and most textbook things to watch in the game today. There is a part of me that wants to root for that guy. A part of me that wants to show the kids I coach a video of Russell playing short for instruction. A part of me that wishes to be on the edge of my seat as he steps to the plate with the game on the line and cheer his name. A part of me that wants to appreciate the kid that just wants to collect Pokemon cards in his spare time.
I just don’t know if I could ever do that. And that is ok. It is also ok for a fan to forget this period in Russell’s life. To have already moved on, or had done so a year and a half ago when the original rumors came out.
While I will contest, this isn’t just a second chance. There are some things that one needs to prove he is worthy of a second chance, and you don’t just grant it because he plays shortstop for the team I like. Abusing a woman, or really anyone, is a despicable act. We cannot just gloss that over. But, it is ok for a fan to ignore it. It might not be the way I move forward with how I treat Russell and this situation. It might not be the way you decide to move forward with this. But, it is ok for someone to choose this path.
Several years ago, someone that is very, very close to me had a spouse cheat on him. They married young, and she never really accepted the constitution of marriage. They both lived different lives, and emotionally and physically they grew apart over time. This eventually led her to sleep with another man, someone who was friends with both of them.
Most of the guy’s closest friends and family immediately jumped to call her every name one might call a female that stepped out of a marriage to cheat. Rightly or wrongly, we were hurt for our friend. We wanted to support him moving forward. But here’s the thing… he didn’t join in. He took the high road and was accepting of her mistake. He took to her defense when things were said negatively. He supported her decision, as much as it may have hurt him. They divorced as smooth as possible, with no hatred and no issues. He taught me that regardless of how much you are hurt by someone, and he was, you can take a high road.
I have had very strong feelings towards the whole story, but recalling what my friend went through, I thought to see how Melisa Reidy is handling this news. I think we all can learn a little from her response.
“I’m thankful there is someone out there still encouraging & wanting to help him be better and do better. At the end of the day, that’s my son’s father & My son will benefit from his father being a better person. I can only hope that his treatments will help him grow into the man that he needs to be, for himself, his future and his children.”
There were no shots. No underhanded comments. Just the wish for a person she once cared for, who is the father of her son to get better. Become a better man, and father. While I will hold some reservations on Russell, I can, and maybe we all can, forget about baseball and being fans, but rally around the thought that hopefully he gets better to be a better father for his children.
