Saturday, September 19, 2009

Goodluck, My Friend

As those in the blog and baseball world probably all know, Pete Abe is heading to the dark side, leaving the beloved Yankees for that other team in the North East. And from what I hear, that other team it isn't the New York Mets. Or for that matter the Norwich Navigators. He's packing the bags and moving to Boston, home of Big Mami and assorted other men dressed in red. I know this will be a painful departure for him, leaving Alex Rodriguez behind. But its a loss for him that will heal in due time.

All joking aside, I wish Pete the best in all of his endeavors. This was a tough decision for him to make, but he did it for all of the right reasons. In the end, family is what matters, along with fulfilling a lifelong dream that he had set for himself as a kid growing up in Massachusetts. Turning down an opportunity of this magnitude is something he would have regretted for the rest of his life.

The response of his readers to the news of his departure have been overwhelming. He started the blog over 3 years ago, and built quite the community of readers from all over the world. While some may not always have agreed with him, the dedication and time he put towards his craft was evident and is what made him as successful as he was. The negative comments written by people to me lack class; some stemming probably from upset not knowing where to get baseball news, while others are just from jackasses who have nothing better to do with themselves. Remember, no one forces one to read something. If you don't like what you see, hit the little X in the top right hand corner!

All in all, the hard work has paid of for you Pete, and it should be a testament to all those out there that if you work your ass off, you can fulfill your dreams. Nothing is ever handed to you in life (at least it shouldnt be), and this gig was something that took him many years to attain. I am very proud of you and wish you well with the Globe (no luck for the Red Sox though, sorry). So shoot high folks, and do what you want in life that makes you happy. Tampa (and Lakeland) wont be the same without you, Pete.

12 comments:

Pete Abraham said...

Christina:

I am very flattered you wrote that. Thanks very much. I hope we are always friends.

Tell Rascal I said hello.

Kyle said...

Great post Christina! I think you speak for most Yankee fans. Pete will be missed. He was a true professional and his blog changed the way sports teams were covered.

Pete provided insight into the Yankees and their clubhouse that few if any others did. He was always the 1st to have the lineup and if someone got hurt Pete reported the news right away.

I wish him a lot of luck with the Globe.

The Commish! said...

Good luck Peter!

You are welcome Christina for introducing you to his blog!

Al Leiter's Bullpen Catcher said...

Thanks Commish. And too think of all the times I blew you off after you would keep sending me the link!

randy l. said...

i too think it's great for peter to be moving up in the world with his new job.

as far as some lohud bloggers thinking peter was a red sox fan growing up , i may be wrong on this, but i think he had a grandfather who was a brooklyn dodger fan and influenced pete in his early fandom.

i think ,above all, pete's a baseball fan at heart so it really doesn't a matter who he rooted for as a kid.

what matters is that he tells the stories of the players and teams he's covering.

Al Leiter's Bullpen Catcher said...

Randy, he grew up in Massachusetts, so he obviously was a Red Sox fan growing up. I can't see growing up there and being a fan of the Yankees, Mets, or any other team for the matter.

His fandom as a kid and his job with the Yankees and Mets isn't connected. You think all the Yankee writers grew up as Yankee fans? Not a chance. But you are correct in that hes a fan (as most writers are) of the game of baseball.

As for myself, I have grown up in New York, but I am a fan of the game of baseball. I follow the Yankees closely and more than any other team, but I still have individual players I root for (Hallday, Holliday) and teams that I hope do well (Phillies).

P-Cat said...

Good luck Pete. loved the blog. Wont be the same without you.

Peter Gammons said...

He's a phoney.

He should of stayed for the end of the season.

This would be like Kim Jones leaving right now so she could cover the red sox' playoff run for NESN.

Put it another way, you think Boston fans would pat beat writer Amelie Benjiman on the back if she up and left the Globe to cover the Yankees's playoff run.


And wait and watch, he'll be lucky if his Globe game posts generates more than 100 comments.

Al Leiter's Bullpen Catcher said...

Sure, the timing of his departure was bad for Yankee fans. It ideally would have been better for him to start his new job after the baseball season is over. Not sure what you do when someone offers you a job though. You start when they want you to start, correct?

As for the decision, people change jobs all the time. Is it really your business to judge what someone else decides to do with their life?

Boston Globe vs the Journal News. It's not rocket science.

Kyle said...

He might have had some say in when he could have left, but really why should he have to wait til the season ends? He was offered a great opportunity.

While it probably was not an easy decision. It's one he would have regretted had he not taken.

Also, he grew up in Mass rooting for the Red Sox and reading the Globe. Now he'll get to be close to his family.

That's kind of tough to pass up. I hope Red Sox fans treat him with respect but you never know. I mean Willie Randolph grew up a Mets fan. Yet, Mets fans refused to accept him due to his associations with the Yankees.

CD said...

Peter Gammons, why would call Pete a "phoney"? His Red Sox bias was always transparent.

I will say I understand where you're coming from. Why everyone in Boston still considers Johnny Damon a "traitor" even though everyone knows the Sox weren't going to resign him.

We'll find out soon enough if Pete is a "phoney".

Will he mock and criticize Tito for bunting they way he dumped on Girardi, saying Girardi's will cost the yanks a game in the playoff by bunting? I doubt it. Just last week, against the Angels, Tito bunted on consecutive at-bats and he didn't say anything (that's where Lackey fielded one of the bunts and threw it away into left field).

Will he lecture Youkis for charging the mound, causing a bench clearing brawl, and getting suspended for 5 games the way he jumped down Podada's throat, last week? I doubt it.

Will he whine about the cheap home runs over the pesky pole and the monster and demand management raise their right field walls the way he cried all year over homers at new yankee stadium? I doubt it.

Like I said, his bias was transparent. He wasn't a phoney, he was a partisan.

Benedict Arnold said...

Yankee fans don't be so hard on Peter. I would have done the same thing.