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Associated Press photo Wilson Ramos began working out with the Aragua Tigres today. |
Ramos worked out with the Aragua Tigres, his first appearance on the field this offseason and first since he was abducted in his native country last week. The 24-year-old catcher, who was rescued by authorities during a late-night raid Friday, has said he wanted to begin playing as soon as possible and has informed Venezuelan media members he doesn't want to talk about his kidnapping anymore.
Ramos initially said he would begin playing for Aragua tomorrow, but his game debut has now been pushed back to next week.
The Nationals will allow Ramos to stay in Venezuela, though the catcher will be receiving increased security. He has been planning all along to move his family to a new, larger house in a nicer location.
General manager Mike Rizzo today told ESPN-980 AM the club intends to fly Ramos into Washington at some point soon to undergo an exam by team doctors and meet with counselors to ensure he is physically and mentally prepared to play again.
Meanwhile, Venezuelan police said two more suspects have been arrested in connection with Ramos' abduction, according to the Associated Press. The men (a Colombian and a Venezuelan) were detained Sunday in a car with several other people in the town of Moron, not far from where Ramos was held captive for approximately 51 hours.
With these latest arrest, eight total suspects are now in custody. Police continue to search for several others who escaped during Friday night's rescue operation.
25 comments:
We're rooting for you, Wilson!
I know it's juvenile on my part but there's something very satisfying about the suspects being detained in a town called Moron. Go Wilson!
"...the club intends to fly Ramos into Washington at some point soon to undergo an exam by team doctors and meet with counselors to ensure he is physically and mentally prepared to play again."
Anyone in the NatsInsider-sphere with a professional therapy background have a comment? Seems to me that this is something one would need to do sooner rather than later.
joemktg, no such b/g here, but I can imagine them wanting a fresh benchmark, just to be on the safe side, along with wanting their own medical folks to get a first-hand look.
I hope the increased secutity Wilson is receiving is substantial.
@ joemktg 4:58
It would be best to have a Spanish-speaking therapist, not just a translator available to an English-speaking therapist.
Issues of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) will need to be addressed. Wilson seems to be committed to his country, but you have to wonder how such associations of the event will continue to weigh on his mind.
A good therapist would be able to explore all such variables, and make a prognosis.
That Wilson came out of this quickly and without physical injury is the most important thing that will happen to the Nats this offseason and in the big picture is the only thing that matters.
As for PTSD, everyone has a different response so we will all have to wait and see just how that shakes out.
Went through something similar as an expat living in Brazil. Didn't need counseling and was fairly back to normal in a week. Routine really helped me and getting back to "work" was a real positive. A colleague at the same company was abducted and completely fell apart mentally. The way people respond to these experiences are highly variable - here only one who knows is Wilson.
Doc - is time of the essence?
Anon 7:22 - can you compare/contrast to Wilson's experience?
Bryce Harper 2 for 3 w/ a walk, run scored. Rizzo was on Hot Stove with a good interview. At least this year, Rizzo didn't say NO to Bryce Harper being on the Opening Day roster.
I don't see it just for the economics of baseball. It will be mid-June or a September call-up.
Rizzo said that Wilson Ramos could be in the VZ lineup tomorrow.
Regarding ptsd, etc. -- I have found that the difficult symptoms and issues tend to pop up later rather than sooner.Things don't sink in until later and start to fester after everyone else has moved on. And yes, returning to the familiar routines does seem to be the best medicine. I wish him only the best and hope that he is able to live life and play baseball simply and happily. What a good guy - we are lucky to have him and not just on the diamond.
http://cdn0.sbnation.com/photo_images/4736957/250265_Venezuela_Ramos_Abducted.jpg
How much weight did Wilson Ramos lose? He looks like he dropped 15 pounds.
Non-professional opinion: I think the distraction for Wilson will be concern for the security of his family in Venez. during his season in 2012. Insuring their security is the first concern.
Just as I don't tend to do the armchair GM thing, I don't tend to do the armchair mental health analysis thing (well, except on close friends and family ;-)). I'll leave that to the experts, preferably those who have personally interacted with Wilson. As noted, I'll be rooting for him, both on and off the field.
HUGE SIGNING:
Mike O'Connor signed as a Free Agent with the Yankees!
Gonat said...
HUGE SIGNING:
Mike O'Connor signed as a Free Agent with the Yankees!
Damn - he would have slotted in well between JZimm and Wang. Maybe Simontacchi is available?
Just checked Sue's site for the AFL updates. I am not sure what to make of the almost 20 errors between Harper, Norris and Walters. I am inclined to disregard it as small sample randomness, but don't know if that is just selective bias on my part.
On the positive side, Purke had another good outing, statistically anyway. That is encouraging.
Arrested in the town of Moron? Geesh, you can't make this stuff up. Morons, indeed.
This is interesting:
http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2011/11/latest-on-ryan-zimmerman-extension-talks.html
Though the statements appear conflicting, it's probably just a difference of opinion over the technical definition of "discussions."...The big question is if the two sides can agree on how Zimmerman's injury history should be factored in.
Though the statements appear conflicting, it's probably just a difference of opinion over the technical definition of "discussions."...The big question is if the two sides can agree on how Zimmerman's injury history should be factored in.
If it was this time in 2012 instead of 2011, this discussion would be relevant. But now it's just a case of Adam Kilgore trying to manufacture a crisis and engender a sense of panic among Nats fans. Kilgore has gone on record saying that the Zimmerman extension is the most important issue facing the Nats this offseason. Really, Adam? He has two full seasons left on his current deal. It's clear that both Ryan's camp and the Nats want a long-term deal, but there's absolutely no incentive on either side to do it now. Zimmerman's injury in 2011 no doubt plays a big part in that. He needs a strong rebound in 2012 to maximize his value, and if he does rebound strongly Rizzo and the Lerners will gladly pay whatever it takes. But they're not going to pay max value until that happens, so right now Zimmerman's agent knows it makes no sense to ask for it. Likewise, with two years left Zimmerman has no incentive to sign now while his value is low. He can wait until after 2012 because if he does rebound strongly he'll get a bigger contract, but even if he doesn't his value won't go lower than it is now. Time will take care of deciding how Zimmerman's injury history gets factored in, and until then Kilgore and everyone else trying to trump this up into a crisis are just crying wolf.
Crying wolf: Maybe, maybe not. I wouldn't call it a crisis by any stretch, but it's a live issue. I assume it's Zimmerman (and his agent) who are not dealing now, as opposed to the Nationals.
Zim will make brazillions of dollars somewhere, regardless, unless he gets hurt first, which is always lurking. But let's assume normal luck, just cuz. Signing Zim now would take giving him his figure, maybe his top figure. But if they won't negotiate during the season, and they don't negotiate this winter, that leaves next winter as do-or-die for the Nats, at which point they will probably be stuck paying top dollar, unless he has a bad year, and Rizzo can't possibly be hoping for that.
And even if he does have a bad 2012, that's no help, because then he will be almost certain to play it out in 2013 in hopes of improving his price, at which point they may well lose him.
Sec 3 - I am guessing it is the other way around, that the Nats haven't engaged. Like Feel Wood said, they have a few years of control left, so they probably figure that there is time. But I think Zim or his agent is behind the stories that are floating out there, or at least encouraging them, and I wouldn't doubt that there is some desire on their part to get this locked up. As Kilgore said, they have watched others get locked up and may be wondering when their turn is. I also think that Ryan gave a subtle nudge at the end of last season, when he implied that if he got as far as Opening Day 2013 without an extension, he may as well go to FA.
Zim is great, so I think that they have to do it. But I don't see him signing any contract that shows a discount for injuries or a bad year. It will look like a Werth contract when all is said and done, and I really, really don't like those.
This Sofa guy obviously doesn't understand negotiations. You gotta have hand, and right now Zimmerman doesn't and Rizzo does. Wait until this time next year when Zimmerman has hand. Then a deal will get done.
And if this Sofa guy ever has hand to go along with his sofa, he'll be using it.
Interesting that Rizzo stated on his 980am interview that if guys want to play in there home country "there is nothing you can do. At the same time, the Yankees cancelled Jesus Montero plays to catch in winter ball.
http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/yankees/going_to_catch_cold_xeSWPduRobEUlZQe42lG8M
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