Ok, stop laughing at the headline… Of course Jayson Werth didn’t sign with the Washington Nationals because he wanted to win, he signed there because they offered him far more years and money than another other team in baseball was willing to come even close to… But what Werth said is really no different than what any athlete in that position says. We know it’s total nonsense, but they’re saying the “right things.”
Philly fans will remember Asante Samuel saying he cam to Philadelphia because the Eagles gave him his best shot to win a Superbowl. He’d spent the previous season with the undefeated New England Patriots. So Jayson Werth just gets to be the next in a long line of guys who chased the money and claimed it was all about winning. And don’t take “chase the money” as a negative. This is his job and you do a job to make money right? So there’s nothing wrong with going for the most money, but oddly enough in sports it apparently is wrong to admit that.
Here was Werth’s full statement.
“They gave me assurance that they’re going to go out and get the type of talent that we’re going to need to be competitive and to win. That was one thing that’s very important to me: Winning. I went to Philadelphia in 07, I signed as a free agent because I said we’re going to win. I wanted to go somewhere where we were going to win. I went to Philadelphia and we won. I signed here in Washington with the same aspirations. I signed here to win, and I believe we’re going to win. It’s going to be a challenge. It’s going to take some time, but that was one thing the Lerner family and the organization was willing to give me: time to win and to help this thing along. I’m looking forward to to the task. I’m looking forward to the challenge. It’s something I’m passionate about. I love the game of baseball. I come from a baseball family, and I think I’m in the place that is very suited for me.”