Zack Greinke of the Los Angeles Dodgers is causing headaches for Major League Baseball as they're set to open up the 2014 season in Australia vs. the Arizona Diamondbacks. Greinke has chosen to be outspoken in his opposition to straying so far from home.
"I would say there is absolutely zero excitement for it. There just isn't any excitement to it," Greinke told ESPNLosAngeles.com. "I can't think of one reason to be excited for it."
According to reports, Australian officials were very displeased about Greinke's comments, sending Dodgers president Stan Kasten into damage control. "Zack has this endearing, contrarian quality to him that we all know and love about him," Kasten said.
"He's famously focused and meticulous about his training regimen. It's what makes him so good and such a great teammate. This is clearly going to alter his routine. I understand that aspect of it. But my problem right now is trying to make room for all the people that want to go -- players, family, front-office people. As an organization, we couldn't be more excited about this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
The former Cy Young winner has certainly done well thanks to his "meticulous" preparation, and he's also no stranger to making waves. Just last season he was involved in an embarrassing brawl with San Diego Padres outfielder Carlos Quentin in which he wound up with a broken collarbone that sidelined him for weeks.
Greinke tried a bit to smooth things over, saying he understood the reasoning behind sending the teams to play internationally. "It's a baseball thing. It's an ownership thing, spreading stuff around," Greinke said. "That's what it's for and it's for the greater good of baseball."
It also may be for the greater good of the Dodgers that Greinke be more on board with the trip. L.A. is attempting to be a bit more cautious with Clayton Kershaw's workload, and may hold him out of the Australia series in an effort to keep him fresh for the season and not tax his arm so quickly out of the gate.
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