Pedro Alvarez Out of Shape

by Charlie Wilmoth on Jan 17, 2009 10:48 PM EST

The Post-Gazette reports that the Pirates are unhappy with Pedro Alvarez's weight and strength, and based solely on the picture the Post-Gazette has provided (which, to be fair, is just one picture, and we all have pictures that are unflattering and unrepresentative), I can see why--he looks fat.

I suspect this is just a blip on the radar, and it's probably nothing to worry about in the grand scheme of things, but Alvarez is the most valuable asset in the entire organization, so the details of these next couple of years have the potential to matter a great deal.

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It is indeed a concern

While players “being in the best shape of their lives” in spring training isn’t really noteworthy, being out of shape (or at least more out of shape than expected) is of concern. Take Oliver Perez for example.

by wickethewok on Jan 17, 2009 10:58 PM EST reply actions

Well, the big hole in his swing is the main concern...

We’ll see how that goes during the year.

by Danno11 on Jan 17, 2009 11:33 PM EST up reply actions

I hope it's a blip

I’m not going to get all middle-aged-white-male-sports-columnist about this, but there is something troubling about this. You’ve got a guy whose name is on the short list for Best In Class, a guy who had a somewhat difficult intro to Pittsburgh from a PR standpoint, and a guy who’s had a lot of hope placed on his shoulders — not his choice on that one, but the hope surrounds his ability to ply his chosen trade. I’m thinking the guy’s going to want to show up to minicamp fully intending to put that all behind him, which isn’t hard to do with a fanbase that has a pretty low bar. And instead he shows up fat.

Put it this way; say what you want about A-Rod, but he wouldn’t have showed up out of shape.

by KPatrick on Jan 18, 2009 3:44 PM EST reply actions

He still has time to make everyone forget about it all.

But yeah, short of showing up for camp in a Ravens jersey, it’s hard to know how he could’ve gotten off on the wrong foot with the fans and the organization any more than he already has.

by Vlad on Jan 18, 2009 5:13 PM EST up reply actions