The Milton Bradley Dilemma

There's another rumour mongering report suggesting that free agent Milton Bradley is the Blue Jays top priority this off season. This time it's a brief mention from ESPN's Peter Gammons.

While we ridiculed Marty York's pronouncement from on high that he had it on good authority that the Jays were interested in the fiery designated hitter, there is no doubt that the budget conscious Jays should be salivating over a former Expo coming off a .999 OPS season who in all likelihood won't demand the same amount of dollars as some of the other higher profile free agents out there.

What I can't grasp is how a general manager who had no interest in bringing Adam Dunn to Toronto because of his apparent hatred of baseball could turn around and suddenly want to bring Milton Bradley to town.

Bradley began his notorious bad boy behaviour in 2004 with an altercation with his Indians manager Eric Wedge. He was subsequently traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers where upon his arrival he branded Jeff Kent a racist (which, let's be honest, wouldn't be the most surprising thing you learn today).

In 2007, Bradley may very well have cost the Padres a playoffs invitation when he tore his right ACL while being restrained by his manager Bud Black during an altercation with first base umpire Mike Winters. While the video evidence didn't do Bradley any favours, it's important to remember that Padres first base coach Bobby Meacham corroborated Bradley's story of Winters demaning language, and it was Winters who received a suspension, not Bradley, because of the incident.

Last season, Bradley again caused universal head shaking when he attempted to confront a Kansas City Royals television commentator, who offered a less than flattering comparison between Bradley and the Jesus redeemed Josh Hamilton. He again had to be restrained by coaching staff and ended up breaking down into tears in the clubhouse.

Despite having more emotional range than Tom Cruise, I've got no issues with Bradley being the Jays starting DH next season. I'd welcome the addition of some character to a team where vanilla is considered spicy. Also, I won't lie. I find the likelihood of Bradley storming the press box with a baseball bat to confront Jamie Campbell somewhat appealing.

But, let's be honest while simultaneously ignoring the bigger issue of skin colour. This team is vanilla (once again, not referring to skin colour) for a reason. It's the team that J.P. Ricciardi has built. While his comments over Dunn last season may have been the result of an emotional reaction, they remain a telling factor over the qualities that Ricciardi is looking for in the players he wants in his team's uniform. Does Milton Bradley fit that template?

Other shit: That oh-so-satirical Bob Elliot of the Toronto Sun has a great idea for what the Yankees can do with all of their extra cash. Of course by "great" I actually mean "increasingly lame." . . . I hope Kelvin Jiminez enjoyed his time in Toronto. The left handed reliever whose acquisition earlier this month had most fans scratching their heads was scooped off waivers again, this time by the Chicago White Sox. . . . I would really get behind an incentive ladened contract for that greaseballer Brad Penny. You could do worse than starting the season with a Halladay - Janssen - Litsch - Penny - Purcey rotation. . . . Not to get all Marty York on you, but I've heard some completely unconfirmed rumours that the Jays received an info pack on Derek Lowe from Scott Boras, and he's not opposed to playing in Toronto. Between the possibility of signing Lowe and hoping that McGowan will be ready in May, the optimist in me isn't too worried about pitching.