By Ricky O’Donnell
Through his first 24 games as a member of the White Sox, Orlando Cabrera has fit in perfectly in Chicago. Acquired for his gold-glove defense at shortstop and to bring speed and intelligence to the top of a powerful order, Cabrera has been as good as advertised so far. He’s struggled a tad at the plate, but boasts an OBP .100 points higher than his batting average, and his defense has been as stellar as ever.
Cabrera has also fit seamlessly into Ozzie Guillen’s heavily Latino clubhouse. But just this week, we found out that Cabrera also has a lot in common with some of Chicago’s other top athletes. Ladies and gentlemen, Orlando Cabrera likes to party.
After the (Red) Sox won the World Series, Cartagena celebrated its native son. Civic leaders sent a fire truck to pick Cabrera up at the airport and take him directly to a ceremony at City Hall. But not long after that, Red Sox management decided that the free agent was no longer in their plans. There were rumors that Cabrera partied too much, according to a source close to the organization.
Consider this the golden-age for partying athletes in Chicago.
None is more famous than Bears reserve quarterback Kyle Orton, whose stained t-shirts and obscene hand gestures got him inducted into the Deadspin Hall of Fame in 2006.
Orton is hardly the Bears only partier. There’s Brian Urlacher (plowed Paris Hilton in Las Vegas), Tank Johnson (went to Ice Bar one time too many), and Ricky Manning Jr. (celebrated a newly signed contract with the Bears by beating the piss out of a computer nerd at Denny’s). Seriously, who goes to Denny’s sober?
Recently, however, there have been reports that Orton has put his beer bong away, and, in an effort to revitalize a reputation fit for a clown, has become a crusader for environmental awareness. While the reports are likely horribly inaccurate (not to mention downright hilarious), it’s good to see Chicago adding some new blood to the party scene in the form of Cabrera.
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Week in Review: A near-perfect game from John Danks and a game-winning RBI by Brian Anderson in the same week? This could be a good year. The Sox lost two of three to the Yankees, and took two of three from the Orioles. For any Cubs fans reading this, that means the Sox finished the week 3-3 (burn!).
Week in Preview: On Tuesday, Sox will pack their bags for a five-game road trip to Minnesota and Toronto.
Over/Under: The number of text messages Mark Buerhle’s cell phone plan allows him to send each month: Unlimited.
Shouldn’t they call him Mr. Thome on second reference? Screw the New York Times, Jim Thome is totally a Hall of Famer.
Plan Your Evacuation Route Now, Ehren: Last time we saw Ehren Wasserman, he was taking the CTA to work and shutting down right-handed batters everywhere. Wasserman will finally grab his rightful bullpen slot this week because of the demotion of Mike MacDougal.
That’s Ozzie: “I keep saying the best [Yankees] player who ever happened – bigger than someone else, but I’m not going to say the name here – is Derek Jeter. Derek Jeter has everything in his life. He’s got money. He’s got rings . . . he’s not married.
Beachwood Sabermetrics: A complex algorithm performed by the White Sox Report staff using all historical data made available by Major League Baseball has determined Carlos Quentin will never stop getting hit by pitches.
The White Sox Report: Read ’em all.
Posted on April 28, 2008