For whom Belle tolls
Orioles outfielder has tirade after spring training game
Posted: Thursday March 11, 1999 06:56 PM
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Belle makes some noise: The uniform may be new, but Albert is back to his old ways. AP |
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) -- Albert Belle
ended his calm, uneventful spring training Thursday with a tirade in the Baltimore Orioles
clubhouse in which he angrily threw his glove, two bats and his helmet into
his locker.
Belle also scattered several letters that were sitting on his chair. He
then quickly undressed, showered and stormed out of the clubhouse without
exchanging a word with any of his teammates.
The tirade occurred after a questionable third-strike call in the sixth
inning of the Orioles' 4-2 exhibition victory over the New York Mets. The
strikeout ended an 0-for-3 day that left him at 3-for-13 (.231) this
spring.
Belle, who signed a five-year contract with the Orioles on Dec. 1, had
been quite civil during spring training despite his well-documented
confrontations with fans, umpires and opposing ballplayers.
Shortly after arriving early to camp in February, Belle addressed the
media twice in three days. He also made a point of signing dozens of
autographs before and after the Orioles' exhibition games.
He signed autographs before Thursday's game, too.
But the dormant volcano finally erupted after a check-swing strikeout
against Greg
McMichael. On his way to the clubhouse, Belle muttered to himself as he
stormed past players in the dugout.
He then shattered one of his bats during the tirade, which occurred in
front of a few teammates and a handful of reporters waiting to talk to
pitcher Mike
Mussina.
"He was just mad at himself, just like when he gets mad at people when
they ask him questions," manager Ray Miller said. "It shows me he wants to
hit and that he demands excellence from himself. There's nothing wrong with
that; I just told [clubhouse attendant] Jimmy Tyler to stay out of the
way."
Orioles reliever Jesse Orosco,
who was in the clubhouse at the time, avoided Belle before walking back
onto the field. Orosco later said the demonstration was simply a prime
example of Belle's competitive nature.
"He took an oh-fer. As long as he doesn't hurt anybody, no problem,"
Orosco said. "He wants to perform well in every game, even in the spring.
That's just the type of intensity he takes the ballpark. I think he figures
the only way he can get tuned up for the regular season is by playing every
game as if it means something."
After the game, the Orioles announced they no longer will open the
clubhouse to reporters while exhibition games are in progress.
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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