Winds of Change

Brett Myers, the pitcher who was sometimes loved and other times loathed during an eight-year run with the Phillies, filed for free agency yesterday after being told he was no longer in the team's plans.

"I officially won't be a Phillie next year," the 29-year-old righthander said in a telephone interview.

Myers, whose contract expired after the World Series, learned that the team would not negotiate a new deal with him during a face-to-face meeting with general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. at Citizens Bank Park.

"We just decided to go in a different direction," Amaro said.

Amaro repeated that answer when asked for his reasons for cutting ties with Myers.

The decision not to pursue a new contract with Myers wasn't surprising. Though Myers had triumphant times in a Phillies uniform - he made three opening-day starts, saved a division-title-clinching game, and swung the bat memorably in the 2008 playoffs - he had just as many that were tumultuous.

Most notable, he was charged with assaulting his wife, Kim, in Boston in June 2006. The charges were dropped.

Myers had other scrapes with controversy, including a highly publicized verbal altercation with a reporter in 2007. Late this summer, he missed a rehabilitation start in the minor leagues after he said he injured his left eye when he fell out of his family's Cadillac Escalade. Earlier this week, two days before the Phillies lost the World Series to the New York Yankees, he was involved in another tempest after a wisecrack directed at teammate Cole Hamels was taken the wrong way. The two friends later laughed off what they said was a misunderstanding and had dinner together.

Though no one in the organization would explicitly say it, there were indications that the team had just had its fill of Myers, the club's top draft pick in 1999. The Phils might have put up with Myers' dramatics had he maintained the effectiveness that helped him win 25 games and post a 3.82 ERA in 65 starts over the 2005 and 2006 seasons, but a number of factors hurt his performance, especially the last two seasons, and exhausted the team's patience.

Myers filled a void at closer and saved 21 games in 2007, but struggled in returning to the rotation in 2008. He accepted an assignment to the minors and came back to play an important role in a second-half run that preceded a World Series title. This season, he suffered a hip injury and missed three months while recovering from surgery.

"The last two years, going to the World Series and all, have been exciting," Myers said. "Other than that, I'm disappointed with how I did the last few years. My last three years weren't as productive as I would have liked."

Amaro said he appreciated Myers' going to the minors in 2008, and working his way back from surgery this year. Myers was expected to be out for the season when he had surgery on June 4.

"We have genuine fondness for Brett, especially after this year, when he worked so hard to make it back from surgery and participate on the field. We have great respect for that," Amaro said.

"Brett is one of our own," Amaro added. "He was here 11 years. It's difficult to let a guy go, just like it was difficult with Pat [Burrell] last year. At the same time, sometimes you have to think about change, so we made the decision. Brett will have opportunities on another club. He's very versatile. He can be a starter or a reliever."

Myers made $12 million this season in the final year of a three-year, $25.75 million contract. He likely will have to take a pay cut for 2010 and could end up with a one-year deal as he tries to prove his health and auditions for a multiyear deal. Myers is open to working as a starter or a reliever with a new team.

"I'll just go out there on the market and see what happens, dude," he said.

Myers, who was 73-63 with a 4.40 ERA in 240 games with the Phils, had hoped to stay in Philadelphia, but was not surprised by yesterday's news. He said he had no hard feelings.

"Actually, I'm not as disappointed as I thought I'd be," he said. "It just didn't hit me as hard as I thought it would. I kind of felt it coming."

Never one to lose his sense of humor and ability to laugh at himself and his occasional knuckleheaded ways, Myers described his parting with Amaro this way:

"I was just like, 'OK, thanks for putting up with my [stuff],' " he said. "He thanked me and wished me and my family well."

Myers said he would miss his teammates and thanked the fans, many of whom supported him through his rough times. After eight seasons in Philadelphia, he said, he knows how tough the fans can be, and he expects to feel some of that old tough love when he returns with another team.

"Hopefully, I'll be playing against the Phillies, and when I do, I want the roughest treatment the fans can give me - when I'm pitching," he said, laughing. "I'm an opposing player. You have to give it to me."

Year, Team   IP   W-L   BB   SO   ERA   

2002, Phillies    72   4-5   29   34   4.25

2003, Phillies    193   14-9   76   143   4.43

2004, Phillies   176   11-11   62   116   5.52

2005, Phillies   2151/3   13-8   68   208   3.72

2006, Phillies    198   12-7   63   189   3.91

2007, Phillies    662/3   5-7   27   83   4.33

2008, Phillies   190   10-13   65   163   4.55

2009, Phillies   702/3   4-3   23   50   4.84

Totals   11832/3   73-63   413   986   4.40   

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