Twins notes: Report says Pierzynski falling out of favor in S.F. La Velle E. Neal III, Star Tribune May 1, 2004 By early Friday afternoon, nearly everyone at the Metrodome had read an Oakland Tribune article in which unnamed Giants pitchers complained about catcher A.J. Pierzynski. Pierzynski, traded from the Twins to San Francisco during the offseason, is having his work ethic questioned. The most recent incident came Wednesday, when two players said Pierzynski had ignored righthander Brett Tomko's request to go over hitters before his start and instead played cards for another 20 minutes. Pierzynski was an All-Star and a .301 hitter with the Twins, but he was known as a nonstop talker who agitated opponents and umpires. Twins players, most of whom came up through the minors with Pierzynski, saw beyond his behavior because he was a good player and a clutch hitter. Even lefthander J.C. Romero, who publicly admitted he had pitch-selection problems with Pierzynski in the past, wasn't too hard on him when discussing the newspaper story. "He's a different type of individual with a lot of skills, and you have to tolerate some things coming from him," Romero said. "You can't take away the type of player he is and what he brings to the game. "We didn't see eye to eye from the beginning. But it seemed like he managed the pitching staff pretty well. He did some things people disagreed with, but there was improvement every year." Twins pitching coach Rick Anderson, who read the story, also said Pierzynski's pluses outweigh his minuses. For the most part, Anderson said most of the pitching staff was able to work with him. "That's just A.J.," Anderson said. "Everyone who came up with A.J. knows he's outspoken. We all know how he is, and that's A.J." Pierzynski, according to the Oakland Tribune, had a closed-door meeting Thursday with manager Felipe Alou and General Manager Brian Sabean. Pierzynski said no problems were discussed in the meeting, but two players contend that Pierzynski wants out of San Francisco. "I'd never ask to be traded," Pierzynski told the newspaper. "... This is a great park, a great place to play." --

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