Tony La Russa's Newest Enemy Is the Mad Hungarian

Do you ever get the feeling that Cardinals manager Tony La Russa just really needs a hug? It seems that he's always mad at somebody or some thing. Whether he's suing Twitter because somebody started a fake account in his name, complaining about the Cubs or feuding with former players like Jim Edmonds, the man just seems to have a chip on his shoulder. I'm actually waiting for the day when he calls out the sun for having an East Coast bias for rising in New York an hour before it does in St. Louis.

So it's no shock that there's somebody else who has caught La Ire of La Russa, but it is somewhat surprising that it's a member of the Cardinals extended family this time. It seems La Russa is upset with Cardinals television broadcaster and former Redbirds pitcher Al Hrabosky.

In a game last week St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina hit a pop up with the bases loaded and basically walked to first base. The ball was dropped and Hrabosky got on Molina's case saying it was "inexcusable" and that he was "lollygagging." Well when La Russa found out about it he did what he normally does when somebody says anything negative about one of his players. He went on the offensive.

La Russa said on his KTRS (550 AM) show last weekend that Hrabosky "should be ashamed of himself" and that "I'm really disappointed in Al." And La Russa continued Thursday.

"Look at the way Yadi plays the game,'' he told the Post-Dispatch's Joe Strauss. "If you ... start accusing him of stuff he's proven over and over he's the opposite way, it's a big mistake. When you take that situation (bases loaded) it's ridiculous. It's a no-brainer. Bases loaded and he's trotting to first base with the bat in his hand. Pete Rose would have trotted to first base with the bat in his hand. Just because he is who he is, you'd better be careful of accusing this guy of being lazy. Do you sprint to first base there? That's garbage.

"They can say I'm too easy on the players,'' La Russa added. "I'm here to say these guys are playing their hearts out. So if someone thinks they're not hustling enough, they can say, 'Tony's too easy on 'em.' I really don't give a damn. I know this club hustles. I know Yadier hustles. And if it's unforgivable if once in a while some guy has a breakdown ... then someone has forgotten how this game is played."

Of course after hearing the subtle dig on Hrabosky's knowledge of the game, Al got a bit upset himself.

"I guess I'm going to ask him for the list of who is tired and who is hurt, so I'll know how he wants me to do my job,'' Hrabosky said. "I'm trying to take the high road. We need to have a conversation. He's entitled to his point of view, but I don't think I have to do any backtracking, and I'm not.

"It's commendable on his part to support his players, but he didn't have to take cheap shots at me,'' instead of just saying Molina wasn't 100 percent physically.

What's remarkable about all of this is the fact that Hrabosky isn't exactly known for calling out Cardinals players while on the air. He's been calling Cardinals games since 1985 and even though he's known as the "Mad Hungarian" he's really more of a "Mild-Mannered Hungarian."

So the one time where he opens up and speaks his mind, La Russa gets upset about it, which is somewhat pointless. Hrabosky is paid to give his opinion on what he sees on the baseball field, and La Russa is paid to manage what goes on on that same field. While I can't fault La Russa for wanting to come to the defense of one of his players, he should probably worry more about making sure that the Cardinals hold on to first place in the NL Central, not what's being said in the television booth.

I mean, it's not like Hrabosky called Molina lazy and then gave his home address out on the air.