Thread by @pigeonize

Okay this is a thread of cool quotes and facts about Zack Greinke, my favourite player. Phillies twitter, Astros fans, young AL ppl who don't remember him in KC, strap in

Greinke never really wanted to be a pitcher. He likes it fine, but his real Thing is hitting. He was worked up as a pitcher because he was just too good at it to ignore, but if you offered a SS position back to him, he'd take it in a heartbeat. i.e. this (he was serious)

He's said before that AL teams are boring to watch to him. He prefers the strategy of the NL, and it allows him to bat, which is one of his great joys (since he's pretty okay at it!) this move must be pretty sad for him.

He's also a pretty good baserunner, will slide headfirst, and has a little something about him that pretty much no other pitcher has : he's an expert in lineouts back to the pitcher thanks to splendid reaction time and a tweaked delivery.

Greinke can't really lie, which leads to his famous brutally honest soundbites.

"Kid'll never lie, even when he should."

"If I lie I forget what I said the first time. I won't remember the lie. I don't know how people do it."

He never means to be mean or hurtful, though.

In fact, when teammate AJ Ellis explained to him that sometimes his remarks were mean or rude, and told him jokingly that he should say five nice things about people for every "honest" thing he'd say, he actually started going around saying nice little things to teammates.

But of course, we all know the Alex Gordon home run story or the time he told Jeremy Affeldt he made a bad pitch. Both happened when he was a younger guy and he'd not really... accumulated the social skills to understand that he was being hurtful. They're both hilarious.

"Greinke answers questions as if the questioner was actually interested in hearing a truthful response." - LA Times

Of course, everybody knows about his big breakdown in 2005, leaving baseball, getting on Zoloft, coming back. He doesn't get on elevators alone with only one person in fear of small talk. The Dodgers warned staff not to try to engage conversation with him unless he initiated.

He hates autograph-chasers and flees them, but always makes time for kids. (in fact, he angered Pat Neshek by desperately dodging him when he chased Greinke around for an autograph.)

He gets very anxious about his makeup each spring training and doubts himself. Tells the beat writers maybe he's lost it. Is very conscious of his body's ageing. Trying to keep up but aware of his own realities. "You don't get better as you get older".

When he had the breakdown, one of the main problems was the gaps between the starts. The lack of things to do to occupy himself when he wasn't playing every day. The issue was never baseball: it was daily life, socialising, all the extra stuff, it made him "angry". He's said

that the pitching mound was one of the only places he didn't feel anxious. Though he may seem apathetic because of his lack of public emoting and flat tone, he's extremely competitive. He lives to win. Very motivated player. He's said that he loves baseball more than his wife!

Another round of fun facts : he was an elite tennis player as a child, but stopped because he was no longer interested in it. His career should he not be in baseball would be a lawn-mowing business (big lawn-mowing guy). Also, these very good Zack quotes :

The Negro Leagues Museum story, another great one, from Joe Posnanski, which tells you a lot about the kind of person Greinke is:

He also had a hard time identifying and communicating about his feelings, which is a huge mood. If you're neurodivergent, chances are you'll know exactly what Greinke was trying to say. Another favourite quote, from Posnanski:

Pre-breakdown Greinke was even "stranger". Kinda cocky, in fact. and much less reserved than he is now. he was named Royals pitcher of the year ; you'd imagine it'd be like his later Cy Young acceptance speech, a short affair. No, he gave an epic 2 minute long infodump:

Greinke also hates Ryan Braun's guts for lying to him about the PEDs. He's hard to make friends with, but players have said a fast track to his heart is to get him started on, and let him talk, about scouting, fantasy football, or his cat, Wilson.

Greinke has a reputation of being a great teammate, and he is especially beloved by Clayton Kershaw and David Peralta. The dude, apparently, once you get his trust, is just funny, and very clever. A future GM/scout with a boundless interest in analytics and management.

Most people will tell you they don't understand Greinke. Even Joe Posnanski, a guy who's written about the guy since he was 19, admits he has no idea what's going on in his head. Personally I think everything he says and does makes perfect sense but that's just my autistic ass!

If you want to learn more about Greinke, I recommend reading anything Posnanski has ever written on him. He's earned his trust over 15 years and writes about him with a lot of kindness and understanding.
Zach Buchanan also dissected him with a lot of wonder.

ok that's it! sorry for clogging the timeline! @phillypheels here's the deets. I probably forgot A Lot.

@phillypheels I invite yall to look up some post-game interviews. If the beat in Houston respect his wishes, it's no talking on days he doesn't start. His honesty can be very refreshing+always constructive. Yes he's deadpan, no he doesn't make eye contact. Avoid robot and serial killer jokes.

@phillypheels I also wanted to add that Greinke is aware of what he means to neurodivergent and mentally ill fans. He was also one of the first players to publicly take a leave from baseball for mental health, and to talk about taking meds. He opened doors for guys like Votto.

Can't believe I forgot about some of my favourite Greinke stories, from Posnanski's SI cover story, for which Greinke refused to pose for pictures. Worth a read, though it’s old and Posnanski’s view of Zack has evolved considerably. si.com/more-sports/20…

And these are only personal stories. His approach to pitching and strategy is fascinating. Arenado once asked him why he'd chosen to throw an unconventional pitch to strike him out. Greinke: "Cause you weren't looking for it". And Greinke was right, he wasn't.

how could I forget the Kinsler story! I love this one.

This is from Molly Knight's book about the Dodgers. Another excerpt (both showed by Zack expert and dear friend Geri, who taught me all of this). Reminds me of another defining Posnanski quote : '"Yeah, I could dominate right away," Greinke says, not to brag but to explain.'

OH HOW COULD I FORGET. My favourite quote by Zack, ever. I feel it in my soul. Posnanski again, documenting the single most relatable thing I have ever read:

Kinsler is another guy who Greinke indirectly helped. Kinsler has ADHD and has been medicated since his teen years. Came out about it in 2010, partly thanks to Greinke breaking the taboo

Adding the more well known but still awesome : Guac monologue, Samurai Cy, and Shawshank Condition. Good article from AZ Snakepit:
azsnakepit.com/2019/7/3/20679…

There’s so much that I don’t even mention in this thread. The Quentin brawl, the very candid way he talked about mental health and spoons, heaps upon heaps of quotes. He’s an endless treasure, so do keep digging

More amazing quotes from the Milwaukee days: thingszackgreinkesays-blog.tumblr.com

Cried over celebrity breakups. Does not like New York (too big). Proudest achievement: his silver slugger. Trained his cat to respond to her name being called. VERY into World of Warcraft for a while in the late 2000's/early 2010s

Another one I just recalled : the sound of the Kauffman fountains bothered him.

Oh, and good god, he hates attention. He doesn't really care about the personal achievement of pitching a no-hitter because it would generate unwanted extra attention ; he was profoundly annoyed by the attention the Cy Young brought him, too. Loves pitching well, hates attention.

Get on it ⬇️⬇️⬇️

https://twitter.com/jposnanski/status/1156941792106991617?s=21