Anthony Rendon was feeling that heat for his recent comments, and now, one of his ex-teammates is calling him out.
The Angels third baseman on Monday said baseball “never been a top priority for me,” and was subsequently called out by former All-Star closer Jonathan Papelbon.
The 43-year-old, who spent a season and a half with the Nationals and Rendon (2015-16) was beside himself on the show when talking about the $245 million third baseman.
“Every single day this guy shows up to go out, it was like a chore,” Papelbon said Tuesday’s episode of “Foul Territory” of what he saw from Rendon in D.C.
“He strictly got away with just raw athleticism and just raw talent. … There’s a reason why he’s not as successful as he really, truly could be. He’s got more raw talent than the three of us combined, but at the end of the day, he just doesn’t give a s–t.”
Rendon, 33, was one of the top corner infielders in the game in Washington, getting MVP votes in four separate seasons before helping the Nationals win the 2019 World Series.
He parlayed that into seven-year deal with the Angels, and after a strong shortened season in 2020, things have been a disaster for Rendon since.
He’s battled injuries and played fewer than 60 games in each of the last three years, hitting .236/.361/.318 in a career-low 43 contests last season.
Rendon even got into it with an A’s fan in Oakland, getting suspended and fined over the incident.
The corner infielder spoke to reporters Monday about his priorities, and he said playing baseball was not at the top of the list for him.
“It’s never been a top priority for me,” Rendon said, according to The Athletic. “This is a job. I do this to make a living. My faith, my family come before this job.
“So if those things come before it, I’m leaving.”
Papelbon said he understands that players have personal lives and things going on outside the diamond, but added that the 162-game grind is “what you sign up for.”
But even accounting for that, the former hard-throwing righty said he would want no part of Rendon on his team.
“I’ll be honest with you, if I’m the Angels GM, I’m trying to get rid of this dude as fast as I can,” Papelbon said on Tuesday’s episode of “Foul Territory.”
The closer said if Rendon truly believes what he said then he should’ve kept quiet because it has the potential to be a “cancer” in the clubhouse.
Rendon still has three years left on his contract — including this season.
“It’s gonna be the worst deal in history,” Papelbon said. “It’s proving that way.”
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