(Busch Stadium) For six years, Jon Jay would arrive at Busch Stadium and head into the St. Louis Cardinals clubhouse, so it was understandable that on Monday things may have seemed a bit out of whack.
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“It’s definitely different walking into the visitor’s side today,” said Jay before the San Diego Padres took on his former squad. “Obviously, I have a lot of fond memories of my time here and it’s great to be back here again.”
“I got my first chance to be a big leaguer here, which is awesome,” he continued. “And obviously winning the World Series with a bunch of guys I came up with in the minor leagues was great. Guys that are friends and family, that was awesome. Then just going on the postseasons we did–and every thing we did in the community. We were very involved in a lot of different things, that was a lot of fun. Like the Make-A-Wish events and just different things we got to do. I’ll always remember those things.”
Still wearing a cast on his fractured right forearm, Jay was disappointed in not being able to play in this series.
“Yeah, it’s not fun–it’s frustrating with this but stuff happens,” he said before returning to the positive. “I’ll just be hanging out like I always do, just having fun and watching the game and trying to help the guys any way I can.”
On the disabled list since June 19th, Jay was hitting .296 (80-270) when he was injured.
“The Padres gave me an incredible opportunity this off-season and they really believed in me and threw me out there every day,” he said. “I’m glad I was able to get consistent at-bats and I was able to do well. I’m looking forward to coming back and continuing that.”
But he might not be able to do so. Even though Jay has been on the disabled list, his name has come up in several trade rumors.
“Just understanding how the business works–that’s always a good thing when there’s teams that are out there contending for the playoffs that want me,” said Jay, then glancing down at his cast. “That’s what makes this a little frustrating, but I’m here right now and I’m just looking forward to–you’ll see me in the dugout just trying to help my teammates out.”
photo credit: Bill Greenblatt/UPI, Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
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