Milton Bradley Needs To Walk Away From Baseball

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The Big Dead Sidebar has lifted its embargo on Milton Bradley-based blogs to pass along this message.

Milty, get help.  Get help now.[picappgallerysingle id="8516228"]

Seattle Mariners outfielder Milton Bradley needs more than a hug, he needs help.

Immediately.

And it has nothing to do with the .214/.313/.371/.684 line he has in 80 plate appearances for the switch hitting outfielder who is now with his eighth team in 10 years.

I’m not talking about assistance from a teammate.  I’m not talking about guidance from a coach.  I’m talking full-fledged counseling by a professional.

The most recent incident came after a bases loaded strikeout that saw Bradley leave the team immediately after being rung up.  Upon hearing the news, I chuckled.  Cubs fans laughed.  And surely, Cub management rolled their eyes and shook their heads.

I compared the ex-Cub, Ranger, Padre, Athletic, Dodger, Indian and Expo to an ex-girlfriend who you dumped (for obvious reas0ns) that would go on to go out of her way to ruin her own life, blaming every other guy for her problems.  Like a good wreck, it was hard to not be amused.

But then you hear about the reasons behind the train wreck.  Not so funny, after all.

It was hip to be spiteful of Bradley’s failures.  All the cool kids (read: Paul Sullivan’s Twitter page) were doing it.  Heck, we did it too.  But a deeper look at this situation reveals that Bradley’s troubles were beyond the field

They always have been.

For many, baseball — and sports in general, is used as an escape hatch.

Tough week at work?  A Saturday at the ballpark can help you forget about the Monday through Friday grind.  Personal issues at home?  A night out with the boys, a brew and a ball game is a common cure for that.

But for Bradley, the issues in his head are clearly affecting his performance on the field.  Bradley, a talented hitter who is one season removed from leading the American League in OPS, can no longer use baseball as his anti-drug.

It’s easy to forget that underneath the layers of being a multi-millionaire for swinging a wooden stick at a tightly wound piece of cowhide, that Bradley is a human.  For years, Bradley pointed at others and dished out the blame to teammates, fans, coaches and society.

And just like many troubled folks, it took a long time for Bradley to look in the mirror and come to grips with who was really at fault all along — himself.

Coming to a higher power, in this case manager Don Wakamatsu, and asking for help is the first step in a recovery process for Milt.

Baseball’s self-proclaimed bad guy is just another ball player to go under the microscope and get professional help.

Khalil Greene and Dontrelle Willis hit the disabled list with social anxiety disorders.

In his first two seasons, Zack Greinke accumulated 28 losses in 57 starts from 2004 to 2005.

In February 2006, the Kansas City Royals right hander had left the team in Spring Training after revealing he had a social anxiety disorder.  And rather than discard him via trade or outright release, the Royals got Greinke help.

In 2009, Greinke won the American League Cy Young Award going 16-8 with a 2.16 earned run average, 242 strikeouts and a 1.073 WHIP.

I’m not going to go as far as to suggest that Bradley will be well on his way to an MVP season somewhere down the line after receiving proper medical and mental assistance.

However, getting his personal problems in order and solving whatever ails the star-crossed ball player is the first step toward not just being a productive on the field, but to being a productive human being as well.