So it's ok for you to assume what Gardy and Ryan "intended" to say but not others? You just assume they meant well, others assume they meant to dog him. You're climbing all over people for the exact same thing you're doing, just with different opinions. No one denies Baker was lying. The difference is they assume he was lying precisely because he didn't want to be labeled soft and have the team go to the media. They did anyway, but about his lying. (Poor guy can't win!) And then, hypocritically just a month later, brushed Pavano doing the same thing under the rug! It's real simple - Baker should have been more honest. But this is also a club that has made it quite known to the public (and thus the players) that they don't like whiners. Slowey, Perkins, and many others have been listed as examples of this. Baker may have felt forced to put on his tough guy hat because otherwise he'd get Slowey'd. There is nothing more valid about your version of the events than anyone else - quit trying to pretend you have any facts that back you up. You're making assumptions. The real hypocrisy, and why this deserves to be ripped, is because they went public about Baker and then were quiet, unassuming, and still complimentary about the EXACT SAME SITUATION with Pavano. ("The guy was trying to gut it out") Hell, at least Baker was just lying about ST starts - Pavano was hurting the team when the games counted and they STILL didn't say a word about him to the media.