OC Register: Angels reliever Ty Buttrey says he ‘lost the drive’ to continue MLB career

[AngelsWin.com]

Ty Buttrey said that he accomplished what he wanted when he reached the major leagues, and it was now time to work toward something else.

Buttrey walked away from his big-league career this week, when he declined an assignment to the Angels’ alternate sign and was placed on the restricted list.

Buttrey, 28, had pitched parts of three seasons with the Angels, at times as their best reliever. He explained in an Instagram post published Saturday that he no longer felt the drive needed to play in the big leagues.

He said all along his motivation was to prove the skeptics in his life wrong and make the major leagues. Once he did that, he said it was difficult for him to keep pushing himself.

“Unfortunately, money and proving people wrong are short-term motivators, especially when you never actually loved the game you dedicated the last 24 years of your life to,” Buttrey wrote. “I dreaded every aspect of the process to become the best, but who the hell throws away 24 years of work? I want to finally be known as Just Ty, not Ty the Baseball Player.

“I completely lost the drive to continue doing something I didn’t love because, in my mind, I already accomplished it. It was never my dream to make it to the Hall of Fame, win a World Series or become an All-Star. In my mind, I accomplished what I wanted, to prove people wrong and accomplish something extremely hard.”

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Buttrey seemed to be a lock to be one of the key relievers in the Angels’ bullpen, based on the potential he’d shown since reaching the big leagues in August 2018. However, he struggled for much of the time since the middle of the 2019 season, and this spring he had trouble commanding his fastball, which is why the Angels sent him down last weekend.

By rule, Buttrey had a few days to report, and he took that time to make the decision to walk away from baseball.

“I’m going to miss the fans more than I’m going to miss the game,” Buttrey wrote. “I want to thank everyone who has supported my wife and I throughout my entire career and the Angels organization for believing in me and giving me the opportunity.”

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[Blarg]

A few years from now he may just regret the paycheck disparity as he settles into a middle class income job. As much as he isn't motivated to play baseball, getting psyched up for another day at the Home Depot is going to be harder. 

[AngelsLakersFan]

Gotta wonder how his wife feels about that decision...

[failos]

He’s never loved the game? That’s odd

[Lou]

14 minutes ago, failos said:

He’s never loved the game? That’s odd

He loved that $1.3 million signing bonus, however. 

[Stradling]

Just now, Lou said:

He loved that $1.9 million signing bonus, however. 

What do you love more, your job or the money it provides? 

[failos]

1 minute ago, Lou said:

He loved that $1.3 million signing bonus, however. 

I’m sure he did. This whole story is baffling, man. And that cash is not going to last forever, especially if he doesn’t have a degree like you mentioned. Good luck to him.

[Angelsfan1984]

8 minutes ago, Stradling said:

What do you love more, your job or the money it provides? 

The money all day. While it’s cool to see the  in’s and outs (pun intended) of California’s public entity sector, listening to insurance companies haggle over values of human beings who are killed or injured isn’t what gets me out of bed in the morning. I know way too much about the value of one persons life vs another. The paycheck and what it provides (and the fact that I’m good at it) are what keep this ball moving. 

[oldguy]

42 minutes ago, Angelsfan1984 said:

The money all day. While it’s cool to see the  in’s and outs (pun intended) of California’s public entity sector, listening to insurance companies haggle over values of human beings who are killed or injured isn’t what gets me out of bed in the morning. I know way too much about the value of one persons life vs another. The paycheck and what it provides (and the fact that I’m good at it) are what keep this ball moving. 

Exactly.  I didn't like having to do grunt work at the OC Wastewater Treatment Plant in the '70's, but it paid twice the minimum wage (which was $2.50 per hour) and went a long way towards paying my CSUF tuition ($90 per semester).  I bet over 95 percent of us are working for the paycheck and there's true honor in that!

[Taylor]

Yay, now there will be two threads about this.

[Taylor]

Just now, cals said:

This is the rational one.

So you won't be posting in this one?

[yk9001]

LOL - I love the way people are triggered by this guy writing honestly.

It was clear as day Josh Hamilton could not give a single F about playing baseball by the time he was with the Angels.  It showed. And if someone wrote it, they were lectured: "You can never get to the majors without truly loving the game".  

Good for Buttrey.  If he is miserable, move on.

And I doubt he is going to be working at Home Depot in a few years.

[WicketMaiden]

Good luck to him, it's his life, he can do whatever he likes with it. I admire the strength of character required to walk away from a high profile career a lot of people openly covet, and hope he finds what he's looking for in his new career. Good luck Ty.

[Lou]

2 hours ago, yk9001 said:

LOL - I love the way people are triggered by this guy writing honestly.

It was clear as day Josh Hamilton could not give a single F about playing baseball by the time he was with the Angels.  It showed. And if someone wrote it, they were lectured: "You can never get to the majors without truly loving the game".  

Good for Buttrey.  If he is miserable, move on.

And I doubt he is going to be working at Home Depot in a few years.

His misery comes from not making the Opening Day roster.

[Stradling]

3 minutes ago, Lou said:

His misery comes from not making the Opening Day roster.

Except that isn’t what happened according to Maddon. 

[Lou]

Just now, Stradling said:

Except that isn’t what happened according to Maddon. 

He's just covering for one of his boys. 

Do you honestly think that Buttrey would have quit if he had made the Opening Day roster?

[Stradling]

Just now, Lou said:

He's just covering for one of his boys. 

Do you honestly think that Buttrey would have quit if he had made the Opening Day roster?

I honestly don’t know and I have no reason to believe Maddon is lying. 

[Lou]

Oh, come on. You know. 

[yk9001]

3 hours ago, Lou said:

His misery comes from not making the Opening Day roster.

That doesn't change my opinion at all. Every single person who has ever changed jobs voluntarily, or decided to change profession, or retire - reached a breaking point where they said 'that's enough'.

I think its completely logical and reasonable to assume his breaking point was having to go the Alternate Training site.

 

[Lou]

1 minute ago, yk9001 said:

That doesn't change my opinion at all. Every single person who has ever changed jobs voluntarily, or decided to change profession, or retire - reached a breaking point where they said 'that's enough'.

I think its completely logical and reasonable to assume his breaking point was having to go the Alternate Training site.

 

So you agree that he quit because he got demoted. 

[yk9001]

5 minutes ago, Lou said:

So you agree that he quit because he got demoted. 

I don't know if it is "because".  If the demotion was the breaking point, I certainly understand it.

[Lou]

Just now, yk9001 said:

I don't know if it is "because".  If the demotion was the breaking point, I certainly understand it.

Ok, so his statement was bullshit. That's what we're saying. 

[yk9001]

Listen, I read that statement once.  I didn't "Zapruder film" it.  But it doesn't seem inconsistent that he hates baseball, AND the demotion was the tipping point.

[Stradling]

There were two lying Maddons on the grassy knoll.

[Tank]

49 minutes ago, yk9001 said:

I didn't "Zapruder film" it.

brilliant. this is your winston churchill moment.