Damon Remains Cheerful
As reported in the Boston Globe:Damon remains cheerful despite earful
By Nick Cafardo, Globe Staff May 3, 2006
As Johnny Damon was dressing at his locker shortly after last night's game was postponed, his cellphone rang.
''Hey, it's the King of Boos," Damon said with a laugh to the caller. ''Hey, you wanna buy my house? Ah, forget it. That would be the kiss of death."
Damon identified the caller as Trot Nixon, one of his longtime Red Sox friends.
''Those guys love me over there," he said. ''Spent most of the night after the game [Monday] with Big Papi. We had a good time. I miss those guys. They know how I feel about them and I know how they feel about me."
And so he packed his things and got out of Dodge.
He endured one night of severe booing but left with a good feeling about seeing his buddies on the Boston side. And he left feeling good about his time in Boston, despite the nastiness Red Sox fans showed him.
One thing that touched him was walking from the visiting clubhouse to the Red Sox clubhouse through the concourse Monday, when he was stopped five times by concession workers and ushers who wished him well. Damon knew all of their names.
It is those relationships he chooses to remember.
He tried to justify the booing of people who used to be crazy about him by telling himself the louder they boo, the more they wanted him to stay. He has said it didn't hurt to hear the cacophony or to see the cruel signs.
But some who know Damon best think he was quite hurt.
No one is naive enough to think a Yankee of any kind wouldn't be booed in Boston. It was just that Damon expected some cheering, too.
''We didn't hit and I didn't hit -- that was the chief concern," said Damon, trying to steer the conversation to baseball. ''All that other stuff, who cares? It goes to show me how much they like me. They'd rather me be out there for them."
Standing at his locker in the tiny visiting clubhouse with a throng of reporters 24 hours later, Damon didn't have much new to add.
He recalled his return to Kansas City in 2001, after the Royals had traded him to Oakland as they shipped out their high-priced veterans. Damon caught the wrath of Royals fans who seemed far more disturbed at team management but took it out on him. Alex Rodriguez has reminded Damon of his return to Seattle and the battery-throwing incident. In Fenway, Damon only had some fake money thrown his way.
''Even walking down the street, people said, 'We hate that you're a Yankee but we loved the way you played,' " said Damon. ''Fans are generally nice, but you get a few asses out there. They just want to be the ones who get under my skin, but I've got thick skin.
''I don't care because I know I gave them everything I had on and off the field for four years. I realized that Boston wasn't going to come up on their offer and that the Yankees were going to give me the best opportunity."
That didn't stop Damon from saying hello to Theo Epstein.
''He was actually walking by here last night," said Damon, ''and he was on the phone -- he's always on the phone. I just kind of stopped him and said hi to him. I just said I was sorry it didn't work out for me. I didn't wish him all the luck but it was good to see him."
Damon was asked if he simply chose not to see all of the nastiness directed toward him.
''It was tough not to see everything," he said. ''I just sat back and smiled and just told myself they weren't going to attack me or my character. I'm very happy at the person that I am and the way I play this game. I'm not hurt by it.
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