Last week, Texas Rangers OF Willie Calhoun 'respectfully' demanded to be traded after being demoted to the Minors.
The Arizona product had struggled in limited playing time and felt like the team gave up on him way too soon. He feels like his an MLB player and needs a change of scenery to be at his best again.
Manager Chris Woodward wanted him to work on his swing as he knew he could do better. Calhoun, however, refused:
“Early on, I felt like what we were seeing was good; he was heading in the right direction,” Woodward said. "It is clear that he is still walking and not chasing; Some of the peripherals were fine. But the swing itself – we asked him to work a little more vertical with his swing. I don’t want to be too technical, but some old swings come up a lot, especially on the pitches in the heart of the board."
Woodward knows Calhoun needs to get more playing time to be at his best. However, he didn't take the demotion lightly:
“At the moment, we don’t view this as a proven long-term solution,” Woodward continued. “That’s what we feel is best for Willie and the team. But Willie needs action – I wouldn’t say a big change. But he should have a little more understanding of how the genre works best for him. I hope he takes the plan we have for him, and descends, and will become firm in blows.”
Calhoun claims he won't see eye-to-eye with hitting coaches and that he's not at a point in his career where he can make this adjustment:
“I know I can become a 300 hitter,” Calhoun said. “He’ll be in a different outfit, for sure… I don’t know if I’ll play another match in the Rangers outfit. And I tell them that.”
While his demotion was a surprise, it's not like he was enjoying his tie with the team. If anything, he's wanted to leave for some time now:
“I feel it’s the same situation,” Calhoun said. “I’ve been wanting to go out for the last year, the year and a half. I feel like I need a change of scenery.”
Maybe, the Giants will look to bring the California native back home, but there has been little to no interest in his services around the league as of now.
