drleather2001 said:If he only had a modicum of self-awareness.
It's such a shame, because he was so fortunate to have the great career he did, but he can't quite seem to appreciate it for anything more than an excuse to party for twenty years.
It's like it all passed him by.
I love the last paragraph. Just... wow:
"I knew how to get the best out of people," Damon said. "But times have changed today." Many teams now frown on their high-priced players hanging together after a game. "When I was playing," he said, "I always took the young guys out after a game to have a good time. I felt the kids had a good time hanging out with me, shooting pool, having dinner, whatever. I saw nothing wrong with that. I was just teaching them to have a good time. I taught young kids how to drink like a major leaguer. If they got pounded on a few beers, I told them they needed to practice more in the offseason. But some organizations don't want their players out partying for hours after a game. They worry they might get in trouble. But hey, I'm not a robot, I'm gonna enjoy being a player."
He went silent for a moment, as if a new thought had crossed his brow. Finally, he said, "I guess teams worried that my partying was a bad influence with young players."