TEMPE, Ariz. — Anthony Rendon recently went through his old emails because he had to delete some to free up space.
That's when he came across a message he sent to himself in 2014, shortly after his rookie season. This note was a pros and cons list for continuing the game. Something he wrote when he was just 24 years old.
Not much has changed. What's on the pros and cons list certainly is – but Rendon's thoughts about retiring have remained consistent.
When he spoke to reporters Monday following his reporting at Angels camp, he made one thing very clear.
“It was never a top priority for me,” Rendon said of the game. “This is a job. I do this for a living. My faith and family come first before this job.”
When asked if it was even a priority, Rendon quipped: “Oh, it’s definitely a priority. Because it's my job.
“I’m here, aren’t I?”
Rendon, 33, has played in just 200 of a possible 546 games during his tenure with the Angels. He hasn't played more than 58 games in a season after suffering midseason injuries each of the last three years.
He signed a seven-year, $245 million contract before the 2020 season. And his contract is still expected to pay more than $115 million over the next three seasons. That puts the Angels in the unenviable position of having to work with a player who isn't clear about how much he wants to play for the Angels.
When asked if he wanted to be here, Rendon answered literally.
“I don’t want to talk to you guys at 7 a.m. or whatever it is,” Rendon said.
When the follow-up question asked about his desire to play for the Angels, Rendon became frustrated.
“I answered your question,” he said. “So why keep picking on it?”
This is nothing new for Rendon, who is quite sarcastic and rarely speaks to the media. Therefore, his answers from Monday should be viewed with caution.
He declined to say how many games he plans to play, but noted that he enters the spring with the plan to try to shake off his injury issues. He had a relatively normal offseason after getting fully healthy in late November.
“Yeah, we did (came up with a plan),” Rendon said. “I think we’ll have this installed in the first few weeks of spring. I think the first few weeks will show whether this works or not.”
“Over the last few years I have set expectations and set goals. I don't know if I jinxed myself or not. I literally just try to take it one day at a time. If I survive another day, I'll be happy. And then we’ll see where we are at the end of the year.”
Ultimately, Rendon's controversial comments about priorities made it clear that he wants to be healthy and contribute. He even said that he considered himself a team leader – a guy who had been there and done that.
But he is also aware that there is some perception among the fan base about his lack of performance on the field combined with his public comments. Last season, for example, he injured his shin in July, refused interviews for two months, and then claimed the Angels' doctors misdiagnosed a broken tibia as just a bruise. This came months after he was suspended for grabbing an Oakland A's fan in the stands after the first game of the season.
However, he said people's view of him was not worth the concern.
“You don’t know me,” Rendon said. “You only know the area there. They're fans, right? They may know that I'm 6 feet tall and 190 pounds, but they don't know who I am as an individual.
“Barry Bonds is arguably the best player to ever play the game and people still hate him. You can't make everyone happy. You're damned if you do, damned if you don't. I don't want to have any operations. Do you think I like going under the knife and being in pain most of the time? I can't pick up my children. I cant walk. Do you think I enjoy this? I don’t want to do that.”
Required reading
(Photo: Sam Hodde/Getty Images)