Manuel says he sent a strong message to Ruiz
CLEARWATER, Fla. -- Charlie Manuel spoke for the first time to Carlos Ruiz Tuesday about the catcher's 25-game suspension for violating Major League Baseball's substance abuse policy.
Manuel says he sent a strong message to Ruiz
Bob Brookover
CLEARWATER, Fla. -- Charlie Manuel spoke for the first time to Carlos Ruiz Tuesday about the catcher's 25-game suspension for violating Major League Baseball's substance abuse policy.
"I got on him pretty good and I think he reacted pretty good," Manuel said after his team's first official spring-training workout Wednesday. "I trust him. I don't think he'll ever do it again based on how he reacted and some of the things I said to him. He definitely was shook up and you could tell he felt real bad about what happened."
The suspension was announced in late November and the Inquirer's Matt Gelb reported that Ruiz had tested positive for Adderrall, an amphetatime used to enhance the concentration level of people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
Players with a medical clearance can use Adderrall or Ritalin, but Ruiz did not have such a clearance and twice failed tests that revealed he had used a banned amphetamine.
After an excruciatingly uncomfortable and repetitive seven-minute session with the media Wednesday just beyond the left-field wall at Bright House Field, Ruiz broke down in tears.
"For me, it's hard, man," Ruiz said as sweat bubbled on his nose. "I lose something for 25 games and I want to be on the field. I want to play. At the same time, I feel like I have the support of my good friends. It'll be great to come back and do my best. I got caught two times and I have to pay for that."
Ruiz, 34, got caught the second time despite the fact he knew after the first failed drug test that he could be tested up to eight times per season.
"It's very difficult having to explain," Ruiz said. "I love baseball. I love my city, Philadelphia and Panama. I want to do my best and show everybody ... I'll do my best."
Manuel said his all-star catcher was distressed during their one-on-one conversation Tuesday.
"When I talked to him, he seemed like he was really hurt over it," Manuel said. "He told me, 'I will never do it no more. That was terrrible and I shouldn't do that.' "
The manager admitted he was upset when he first got the news during the offseason because it meant the Phillies would have to spend the first month without the player who was arguably their MVP last season.
"That's a good argument there because he stood out," Manuel said. "Yeah, I was upset when I first heard that because Chooch is a big part of our team. About the last three years he has developed into one of the best catchers in baseball. I think (Yadier) Molina (of St. Louis) has definitely improved his hitting, but Chooch can play right there with him. He's gotten that good."
Ruiz can participate in spring-training games, but Manuel said he would likely see a lot of action in minor-league games because the Phillies have to get Erik Kratz and other catchers ready for the start of the season. Barring rainouts, Ruiz will be eligible to return April 28 against the Mets in New York. Only then can he truly begin to answer the question about how much, if at all, the Adderrall contributed to his career season last year when he hit .325 with 16 home runs and 68 RBIs.
Manuel said he expects Ruiz, who is in the final year of his contract, to remain among the game's elite catchers.
"I definitely think so," the manager said. "I think the last couple years, he's really learned how to hit and take the ball the other way. He can hit a fastball, especially if you double up on a fastball and things like that. Chooch can hurt you."
The manager meant that Ruiz has the ability to punish opposing teams with his bat. For now, however, he is only hurting the Phillies and that was clearly causing an acute heartache for the catcher on the first official day of spring training.
Comments (67)
No offense to Charlie...but the suspension spoke the loudest to him.....— nuggett- Disagree, Nuggett. I think the players on this team genuinely respect and love CM. Knowing CM, he's moved on from it and so have I. I expect this is going to make Carlos a better player, more focused at the task at hand.
Why don't you just talk to the man in private, Manuel, instead of calling him out in public trying to prove what a "bad *ss" you want the fans to THINK you are? What you did by making this discussion with Chooch public was something you would NEVER do to your pet Rollins for breaking one of the two rules you hold the rest of the team accountable for.- Dead on, @ghost, every word of it, top to bottom.
Of course, if you read another poster's take on what you wrote (you'll see it in response to another poster several posts down the list), you'll understand that you're really not speaking the truth but, instead, all you wrote was fabricated to support and adhere to the agenda you and I and a few others maintain about Selfish Jimmy Rollins and Happy the Clown Manuel. Dissenting views about Selfish Jimmy and Coddling Charlie are not allowed and are seen to be pure fabrication.
Imagine that we're not allowed to see things differently than some others! A different viewpoint is now seen to be nothing but agenda-driven lies. God Bless America, this is what it's become!
Shame on you for that, @ghost!— advantasux - @Advantasux: I was probably one of the more vocal ones pointing out the Ryan Howard failure to go to left; one who asked who was working with him to get back to the early years when he went to all fields. Ditto for the bench coaching of Mackanin compared to Jimy Williams. I'm not a stats maven like Schmenkman but I know a team that has responded to a manager, no matter how you or your acolytes like to demean and belittle the manager. If you are in such distress over the team, day in, day out, why bother to attend the games, to post one bitter post after another? C'mon man, even in the off season and on the first day of pitchers and catchers? LOL! Why not root for another team if it causes this much angst? Going around with bitterness in ones heart is not good for one's health. I want you around so when the boys take the division or forbid, a wild card this season, you and your followers will be available for all "I told you so's" :)
Not sure if you were a kid scarred in '64 or Black Friday (I was!). Not sure if your life is a happy one or miserable one. Not sure if your handle indicates you were one of those unlucky ones who got hooked by that Advanta ad played out on the financial pages of the Inky a few years back. The one touting a 10% return on investment, which promptly went belly up. Or if you were an Advanta worker who lost a job after it fell. If so, my sincere wishes for a better future. In the meantime, come on over to the fence with me. Rest assured, should the SS pull a stroll to first, I'll be the first to cry out. If RH goes on a streak of ineptitude at the plate, count on me. And if the team looks good, I'll be there, too. This is a better team then you profess it to be. Trust me, my fellow poster, the lean times will come, as they always do, for this is Philadelphia. Enjoy the good times while you can. But call it for what it really is.... - @Riverrat, funny how you posted this the exact time I responded to this useless excuse for a Phillies fan. Thanks man — TexasYankee
- @TexasYankee: Appreciate your support, but we'll be fine. No need to toss names at them, I'd like to think we're better then that! All I ask is for this one to be honest before he posts; things aren't as bad as he thinks they are, but in time, as this team moves on, we may be back in the Baseball Stone Age. He knows that as truth if he is a fan as he purports himself to be. Hope the weather in TX is better then the Philly area. Rain turning into snow. Gloomy, dreary weather. Fitting weather while reading these folk's posts!
They managed to chase some good folks like Bearsfriend, Dudeskins and the like away with some of the most bitter , vile and personal attacks in print. Me? I'm not goin' anywhere. Look forward to your posts this season, should be a good year. - @advantasux, I have read your comments here for a long time, and you are, without a doubt, the biggest hypocrite, anti-phillies fan here, and the competition is tough. Ruiz plays for the Phillies, the Phillies play for the fans and city, the players are public figures and should be called out in public in an attempt to answer questions and concerns and have honesty and disclosure, all the things you cry about, like every single thing, you cry, whine, complain, over and over again. You have never been right, you contradict everything said here by the others and yourself. The people here, the Phillies, and society in general would be better served by you finally moving 890 miles north and rooting for the Mets, right where you belong. You contribute nothing and perpetuate a negative stereotype that most of us good, loyal fans do not deserve. I actually believe you are warbiscuit's other account, although you clearly are not as smart as him, and thats bad. — TexasYankee
- Thank you, my friend. We certainly stirred the s**t pile with the Manuel and Amaro apologists, eh? Like you, none of these homers that look at this team's leadership through rose colored glasses will EVER shut me up. They are indeed entitled to their own opinions, but that goes both ways -- so are we. What these apologists can't apparently wrap their brains around is that Amaro has decimated this team in short order with his ridiculous off-season "low risk, high reward" moves. The only thing Amaro has proven is that he is a LOUSY judge of talent. PERIOD. In addition, Amaro is a lousy judge of what it means to be a COMPETENT manager. Happy the Clown could have won with that 2008 team. But, when it comes to having to actually prove your mettle and MANAGE, Manuel has come up on the short end of the stick against all of his peers. He was horribly schooled by LaRussa and Bochy could manage lights out against our self-proclaimed hitting guru, who was nothing more than a career .198 hitting, Japanese League failed "major" leaguer. I dismiss every Amaro and Manuel apologist as nothing more than people who don't mind being made jerks of by the management of a team that obviously is not serious about winning it all. You, I, and others will continue to post what we believe to be true and the rest of the apologists, like "Texas Yankee" (what's HE doing here anyway?) and DLR can keep following Manuel, who apparently has as much power over their minds as Charlie Manson had over his girls.
- This post was directed toward my good friend, advantasux, not the TexasYankee moron.
- "Texas Yankee" (what's HE doing here anyway?) and DLR"
DLR? LOL!
Who's he?
This should be fun...... - get ready for the old ruiz— AlexSp
- BS. Ruiz got caught once, and continued to do it, then got caught again. That doesn't show remorse, that shows stupidity.— philly-born
- chooch broke charlie's heart— Serge_Matthews
- How tough is it to get a perscription for Aaderrall? Yeh Doc, I have trouble concentrating. Boom done.— TheDude
- Don't the "Phightins" have some quack doctor on their staff who can diagnose Choochie with ADHD and get him some dope all legal like? Seems too easy to the Tonner.
- HLA: No, but maybe if he flies back to Philly he can see the Sixers docs, Dr Howard, Dr Fine and Doctor Howard. Part of te medical staff that said the Bynum trade was good to go!
- So wait - now he can get the prescription okayed, right? So he should still be using the Adderall this year, which should help him.— knebman
- Ahhh Chooch ... one of my favorites, but twice? I'm disappointed.
No offense, but that one-on-one probably ended up with a lot of lost words on both sides.— s - Get a doctor to prescribe cooch some adderall already!! Its not steriods, it helps people concentrate.— dcn
- Ghost Of Callison ,you are 100% correct on all counts. Charlie has 2 sets of rules. One for J-Roll and another for everyone else. He's a hillbilly phony.— Johnnyboyl
- I can guarantee that Amaro will never get busted for using unauthorized truth serum.— dasher
- Good one. Although I'd LOVE to see him hooked up to an old fashioned lie detector. Amaro wouldn't know the truth if it sat up and smacked him in that smug mug of his.
- It is a ridiculous rule if some with a prescription can use it legally. Course it's a rule, so why didn't Ruiz just get a doctor to diagnosis him with ADD or ADHD. "Hey doc, trying to pay attention to my 68 year old manager, I just can't, I need some Adderall. But really it should not be a banned substance. What if some player has only one testicle can he get hormones?— retzlaff
- We'd just better hope they don't ban Geritol.— s
- Give me a break...He doesn't have two sets of rules for JRoll and everyone else....Everything Jroll did last year was all over the media last year and years past...— Philliefan75inAZ
- Spot on , Philliefan75inAZ! And it was dealt with in a manner that CM felt appropriate and more importantly, the rest of the team endorsed. Gotta understand, with these folks here, you're talking sense, something that doesn't fit their agenda. And we're not about to break through anytime soon. But we'll fight the good fight....!
- Knock off the back handed slaps. Manuel would NEVER have been that quick to call out Rollins. Look how much rope he gave him while Rollins kept skipping the first base last year. Only when it became obvious and the fans started calling him out in these pages (yes, you better BELIEVE he reads this stuff and so does your other buddy, Amaro) did Manuel finally say something to Rollins. Did you conveniently forget the timeline of how it went down, like most of the Amaro/Manuel apologists? Get real, man, and while you're at it, get off your high horse. You want to call me out? Do it like a man and do it directly. Don't throw knives at my back.
- Who are you, the Philly.Com censors? LOL! Listen, you need to get to bed, school tomorrow. My discussion was directed towards Advantasux, not some new comer like you. But I see he's not around, so I guess any port in a storm, eh? Defendng the good ole team, very honorable. So, you've convinced yourself that the MLB team hangs on your every printed word? HeHe. As far as your semi-serious baseball question, do you recall the manager pulling the SS out of a game 2 seasons ago? Was that not enough action for YOU?
But seriously, I'll talk Phils with anyone. But not with one who goes around disparaging people. Tonight you've lit a torch, along with your good bud. You want to play it straight and talk facts, I'm in. If you want to continue on the way you are, I'm out. Your call. - I responded. It didn't go through. I'll try again. First of all, we all work different hours, so we all have different bedtimes. Secondly, in answer to your attempt to protect Manuel again regarding Rollins -- short answer? NO. It took too long, but he certainly has a short leash with someone who doesn't apparently scare him. Thirdly, regarding disparaging people, you did just that when you indirectly attempted to put down advantasux, myself, and anyone else that doesn't agree with YOUR opinion of the team and its leadership. When YOU are ready to admit that your heros, Amaro and Manuel, are less than stellar in their performance, I will be happy to remind you why. Until then, direct your comments to your opinions about the team, not people that voice their opinions.
- I disagree with the JRoll issue. IMO Manuel has managed this team as well as can be expected. He gave JRoll enough rope to hang himself before he took him out of the game. To a player as prideful as Rollins, that had to hurt. And it worked. Juggling an MLB roster has to be a tricky thing, no? One of my favorite Phils, Bowa, could not do it. But somehow this guy could. Ditto a guy like Sparky Anderson, a poor MLB hitter, an outstanding manager for a great team. My point is, and if you review my 1st response to Advantasux, if you read it, is this: If a player lollygags, I'm calling them out. If a hitter continues to strike out on the same pitch, I'll be there too. If a Halladay can't do it anymore, I would like him to retire with grace. I love this team. I think the fans here are the best in the country....tried going to the NY sites, or the Chicago sites? But I tire of the constant whine and bitterness as if you or I can do a dam thing about it. And to think not one pitch in a real game has been thrown and you folks are griping for no reason. For Gods sake, Ghost, let's let them play before we go off, no? Your turn. And by the way....cool nickname, get an avatar for it. Maybe a Callison. Before the other Callison beats ya to the punch! Your turn....
- Thank you for the accolades, DRR. I have no axe to grind with you. I'm willing to accept the olive branch. You have to understand, like all Phillies' fans from back in the day, we have been conditioned to accept failure. This is why our ability to believe Phillies' management has to be PROVEN. These last two off seasons have done NOTHING for my confidence.
- Obviously, the post from 12:52 A.M. preceded the post from 1:02 A.M. Please accept the 1:02 post as my latest. Now, I AM going to bed. We will talk later, but I don't think we're going to agree most of the time. I have deep-seated feelings about the capabilities of both Amaro and (especially) Manuel.
- @Ghost: I too, sent off an olive branch with further insight on who I am as a Phils fan. I think we overloaded the main server at Philly.Com! :) as I don't see my latest post, either. I've no personal issue with you, either. In fact, my real venom goes towards Andrew Bynum, Tony DiLeo and Jeffrey Lurie, not a Phils poster. My real venom can be found on the main page, where I like to comment about the latest horrible crime or government rip off. Might I see some of you guys, there, too? I hope so. This stuff is just fun and games, the stuff on page 1 affects you and I directly. I wish you well and we shall meet again! With much greater respect towards the opponent, of course! :)
- In addition, I've been a fan since 1964 and attended games at Connie Mack Stadium, probably before you were born, so have a little respect for your elders, sonny. Also, as far as being a "newcomer", you obviously don't know me. I've been posting on this board for the last five years -- three of which under a different moniker. That said, YOU are the actual newcomer, as far as I am concerned. So please get your facts straight and never let a fact get in the way of the truth, unlike your apparent hero Amaro. And, my friend advantasux, who is also a Phillies survivor from back in the "lean" days, will be around soon enough to "school" you and others of your ilk. Now, you're not my real son, so as far as I'm concerned, I've spent enough time with you tonight. I'm sure we'll agree to disagree in the future.
- @Ghost: My 1:28 post was supposed to be my sign off, but I see this post here never went thru-3 times, so I shall attempt one final time: I became a fan in 71 but I am older then you think. In 77 I lay sick in the Cape May Coast Guard infirmary with fever, while the Black Friday game was played on the TV. So, like you, my fandom was forged in bitter defeat and failure. In my entire 26 year run in the CG, only the 80 championship brought true satisfaction. So there you have it. We emerge as friends, not foes, with differing opinions. The olive branches have been passed and accepted. We live to fight another day, but with mutual respect as true Phils fans......
- When did the "reporter" as the question...why did you wait til now to discuss it with chooch? Pathetic all around— Friend to All
- Geez, three-quarters of the lame as*es in the NFL aught to be on Adderrall. If the parents of any four-year-old can get a doctor to perscribe this stuff for their little darling ...— Ron Datesman
- I believe that Victorino was on prescribed adderall; wonder if Chooch got it from him? Probably not hard to get in any case.— terrycindyian
- Should Manuel have known? Was there a difference in Ruiz's mannerisms? Has he ever told the players don't use any illegal substances?— Phillies2008WSChamps
- Ruiz is a cheater, no different than A-Rod or Braun.— Drew777
- There are currently 116 MLB players that have a doctor's RX for adderall!
So why didn't Ruiz just get an RX? Hard to figure!— larryv - Charlie should have known what was going on if he was any kind of manager.— krautmef1
- That's the point. He isn't a manager. He's an old cheerleader. Ever listen to the guy try to put a sentence together? Do you think his players have tuned him out? After the first three or four sentences, you have a tendency (if you know how to read people) whether or not what they say makes any sense or whether the man attempting to speak HAS any sense. I guarantee you that Manuel's players sized him up on day 1. As I've said many times in the past, his players like him because he's a push over who let's them do whatever they want without repercussion. He's the old goober in the dugout that they all laugh about when they're out on the town. There is absolutely NO respect there. How can there be? These are elite proven major league players, playing for a self-proclaimed "hitting guru" who hit for a .198 career batting average, while concurrently extending his failed career in Japan! That says it all. The fact that Amaro keeps him employed after the debacle in 2011 says everything you need to know about Amaro, as well.
- Anybody using Callison has to be smart. Ghost of Callison nailed it.— Johnny Callison
- AMEN! to everything this poster said, and to his handle as well!!! Impossible not to love good old #6. — advantasux
- Thanks, Johnny, and to my good friend advantasux. There are more of us than there are the apologists. Apologists like DRR and TexasYankee are dwindling as rapidly as the cells in Manuels brain. Some people are just afraid to call it like it is and live their lives through rose colored glasses. I prefer NOT to be a patsy or allow anyone to make a jerk of me. And that's exactly what I think owners like Lurie and Montgomery and their underlings, like Amaro and Manuel, are doing. Now, the kool aid drinkers and apologists will keep hoping for a different outcome. But, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. That's where they live right now.
- fell asleep early for once and missed all the fun, @ghost. I'm guessing everyone's left by now and have headed over to other battlegrounds...I'll find where you're posting today and will be sure to repay the favor.
great responses by you on all fronts, and hysterical line here about the apologists dwindling as quickly as the cells in Manuel's brain.
Was expecting a couple of other guys to join the fray but there are so many stories posted right now by the writers that we've effectively been "spread out" (thinking of Moe there, to Larry and Curley).— advantasux - He's a cheat. He should be made to wear a scarlet C on his uniform all season.— Wilhelm Von Humboldt
- Drew777...SPOT ON.Baseball has gone to pot.— tobyjoe
- ruiz speaks almost like he needed it to perform at a high level
I bet he will never be any good again— stayoutofphilly - No, Manuel isn't feeling any pressure and looking over his back, err, third base line. What's the over/under he makes it to June 1?— TomO
- Remain among the "elite" catchers? I love Chooch but lets be real here, he had a nice year last year that was drug aided and he is 34 years old with one good year in the majors. Hardly the stuff that puts you into the "elite" category.— billro33
- It is not up to me to judge Ruiz as a person. As a fan I can simply say that his actions, this being his 2nd offense, were dumb at best and selfish at worst.— bartfr
- There is an elite catcher in the National League. Goes by the name of Posey, Buster. You know, the reigning MVP for the reigning World Champions? Sheesh.
I'm OK with Manuel talking about Ruiz. Ruiz was going to face the media today anyway. Ruiz did this, Galvis used PEDs and Romero did a few years ago as well. Manuel has had enough and may be sending a message to the rest of the team.
— therealeman - As for the "old Ruiz" we'll see. They guy has been a strong second half hitter for a few years, hitting over .300 in the second halves of both 2010 and 2011. I doubt this is all due to Adderal. I'd put my money on him still having a good year.— s
- Laughable reponse by Manuel. During the drug and steroid era's of baseball, Charlie Manuel was around the game.
Impossible to believe the coaches and managers were unaware of the players that were juicing up.
I will take it with a grain of salt, Charlie's mock admonition of Ruiz.
Probably mad with Ruiz that he got caught - not that he was using.— candidly - Either way, it's time to plan for new infielders at every single position in the very near future. Age, injuries, wear and tear, whatever. It's not 2008 anymore.— burholme
- This is a real bummer all the way around. I like Chooch and loved when Ruben extended him after '09 season at a great price. I've lost some respect here, though. He seems remorseful and I ain't throwing stones in the glass house I live in. Chooch gets a second chance (third, really) with me. Hope Kratz seizes the opportunity he'll get in April and picks up the team.— vafan
- I had to read this again before I called out Charlie for airing the dirty laundry. I always thought he did a good job at keeping the media at arms length from team issues. I was initially disappointed but, after reading a little more thoroughly, he may have just repeated himself after being asked a follow up question. Hard to see Charlie calling out one of his guys and want to give him the benefit of the doubt.— vafan
- still don't know why he used the drug. Doesn't sound like roids where it makes him stronger or have better endurance.— Tripod691
- Hey Cholly, I think you could use some adderral, you senile ole fool. The faster they fire you, the better off the team will be. Your good ole boy act wore out the second day of the season you where hired. Now Beat It!— shattereddreams
- How can someone get caught twice? Incapable of understanding— BigMike100
- Get a prescription!— Poppys
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