With the disk problem and the concussion, I doubt he'll be the same player again. I wish him all the best and hopefully he can come back from this, at least from a health standpoint, if anything.

I'm totally disgusted with the way the Os are being run and they way they are playing, but I do like Roberts. He seems like a genuinely good guy and though his abilities may be diminishing (even excluding his injury) I think he's a valuable part of the organization. Hopefully someday Angelos (and whomever he puts in a "leadership" position will reward him (and us long suffering fans) with some measure of competitive baseball in the near future.

Another subject very dear to my heart but i am going to leave this one alone.My Dear Mother told me that if you don't have anything good to say don't say anything at all.I think i will finally take her advice on this topic.

The guy collects $10M per year and hasn't visited Camden Yards since mid-May! In a fair world he should be forced to do something to earn that pay. He could at least spend a little time mentoring the minor leaguers but he's a union guy and that's "not his job", right?

Can you say Steriods?

The guy hit himself in the head with a bat, for crying out loud! He's lucky Angelos didn't try to get out of paying his contract.

Roberts will never be the same player he was 6 years ago. If he plays again, he's going to eventually have to hit the dirt again, whether it be to dive for a ball in the hole, or beating a throw to base. Every time he hits the ground he is endangering his health for the remainder of his life. Its not worth it. Its a game. You have all the money that you should ever need. Don't be crazy. Nobody hates you for what you have done. Leave the guilt behind.

"saw many of his teammates for the first time since he last played May 16."
"I felt like it’s something I needed to do today"

What has he been doing for the past 4 1/2 months? I am sure he has been cashing his paychecks. Has he been returning any of the money? Roberts is just another example of a pampered athlete with a guaranteed contract who takes the money and contributes little or nothing for it.

Hey Jeff with just a small sampling of reply's so far i thought there would be more sympathy given to him But that doesn't seem to be the case but in any event it once again shows how fans are disgusted with brian but when nick steals his pay check the last 2 years there isn't a whisper.I guess drastic underperformance doesn't count.

@dspedden - A pampered athlete??? Since when is having a BRAIN INJURY being pampered?? Do you know what he's been doing for the past 4.5 months? NO, you don't...so just shut up. Some of the paychecks have been cashed...and have gone straight to the sick children at the University of Maryland Children's Hospital. He has also been busting his tail rehabbing...that is something that must be done in Florida...not in Baltimore. He absolutely has kept in touch with teammates as well. If you don't know what you are talking about, just stop sitting in your mama's basement, behind your computer, slinging insults that you would never say to someone's face. I'm so sick of the fair-weather fans in this town!

Of course, Lancione would use this opportunity to take ANOTHER shot at his obsession, Nick Markakis. What a tool!
The entry is about Roberts, but ol' Bobby Boy couldn't resist.
Sicko

hes always been a class guy but its over he will never be healthy for any long enough period tp play baseball , hes got his dollars time to retire .had a good career little tainted with the roids and his body seem to break down more when off of them , we need to go young at second now anyway , bye brian thanx for some memories

I have been critical of the Orioles for not trading Roberts when his value was high, not because I knew something like this was going to happen, but because the Orioles need to trade good players to get good players and his value was not going to get higher. (The same is/was true with Markakis, but that's another subject that has sort of come and gone due to inactivity and low imagination.)

Nevertheless, Roberts has been a good Oriole and an asset to the community. He earned his $10M/yr with his past performance, and I have no doubt whatsoever he his genuinely trying to get back at a healthy level.

While I may be critical of the way he was handled by The Warehouse, I cannot be critical of Roberts -- the (former) player or the man. I wish him well, and that has nothing to do with his absence at 2B.

blancione -

Not a whisper?

Just because people aren't over-obsessed with Markakis, doesn't mean there's "not a whisper" about his average performance.

Yea, his performance isn't what we expected - and hindsight is 20/20. It's been posted, blogged, responded, and written about. Where have you been?

Even if the Orioles tried to trade Markakis, it would have to be until next season when or if he goes through a hot stretch at the plate. You keep screaming about it, and it's been noted. Stop already. It's tired.

Tell Gus Frerotte, I mean Brian Roberts, if he hadn't hit himself in the head with a bat, he probably wouldn't have this problem. He should thank his lucky stars he's got a nice fat contract so he can sit back and do absolutely nothing. In the real world that would be called robbery and he would be in the slam for stealing $20 million dollars over the past 2 years.

@dspedden - A pampered athlete??? Since when is having a BRAIN INJURY being pampered?? Do you know what he's been doing for the past 4.5 months? NO, you don't...so just shut up. Some of the paychecks have been cashed...and have gone straight to the sick children at the University of Maryland Children's Hospital. He has also been busting his tail rehabbing...that is something that must be done in Florida...not in Baltimore. He absolutely has kept in touch with teammates as well. If you don't know what you are talking about, just stop sitting in your mama's basement, behind your computer, slinging insults that you would never say to someone's face. I'm so sick of the fair-weather fans in this town!

Hey moron detector i will take any and all oppurtunities to point out the underperformance of NICK M. It's very funny that even the national media is now starting to point out just how over rated and unproductive he his , while our local guy's just keep ignoring the problem something that has been going on for more then 2 years now. This isn't a obsession this is a attempt to transfer some of the blame to where it rightfully belongs. you are the prime example of what i am talking about.

Next time the o's find out one of their players was on the juice - maybe don't sign them to a 40 million contract extension. that would be a good start.

sign a lead off man in the offseason and release him. you won't see him play more than 50 games a season for this point on.

Blancione has a good point about Markakis. Markakis performed at a high level prior to swindling the Orioles for a $66 million contract. Ever since he swindled the Orioles for the $66 million, Markakis' performance has declined consistently, with this season being the worst of his career. In fact, this season, Markakis has stooped to the level of being a completely average hitter. The problem is that he is being paid like a star, which he is not and never will be. With Markakis, you basically have a corner outfielder (which is a power position) with very limited power, slightly above average defense, and the inability to be a serious base stealer. Markakis is worth half the money he is being paid. He is not even hitting a lot of doubles this season, and he looks like he has lost 20 pounds (lack of conditioning). By the way, it's funny how Orioles fans consider Markakis a "philanthropist". Markakis donates less than 1% of his salary to charity. What a cheapskate.

Why is this poster who goes by the name Raven, blasting me for calling Roberts "pampered" when it wasn't me. It was another poster!! Get your facts right Raven!! Get a new prescription for your bifocals.