Guillen has harsh words for Scioscia

Nationals outfielder Jose Guillen is usually politically correct when it comes to talking about the Angels, who suspended him for the last week of the 2004 season and the postseason because of what they deemed inappropriate conduct following his removal for a pinch-runner on Sept. 25 against the A's.
Guillen has told the media that he has moved on, that he's taken anger management classes and that he's happy to be a member of the Nationals.

But after Wednesday's game, Guillen had harsh words for Angels manager Mike Scioscia. Guillen says he is still upset that Scioscia didn't keep the 2004 incident a private matter and felt that he never should have been suspended. Guillen was hitting .294 with 27 home runs and 104 RBIs at the time of the suspension.

In that game against the A's last September, Guillen was hit by a pitch. Scioscia then had Alfredo Amezaga pinch-run for Guillen, who threw up his arms in disgust. After he entered the dugout, Guillen threw his batting gloves against the wall of the dugout. According to newspaper reports, Guillen and Scioscia had a shouting match in the clubhouse after the game. A day later, Guillen was out for the season.

"You get suspended just because you want to play every day. You just want to stay in the lineup," Guillen said after Wednesday night's 1-0 victory over the Angels. "And your manager comes in and approaches you in front of everyone. I always said if you approached me differently, it's a different story. I know it's over, but that is something I will never forget.

"We should have handled that situation differently. There was a lot of stuff that came out of the clubhouse. We always said, 'What happens in the clubhouse stays in the clubhouse.' [The Angels] didn't follow those rules."

What triggered Guillen's anger on Wednesday was an incident that occurred the day before. Scioscia and Nationals manager Frank Robinson were involved in a heated exchange near home plate Tuesday night after Robinson asked the umpire to inspect reliever Brendan Donnelly's glove for pine tar.

Guillen said he was upset that Scioscia, 46, confronted Robinson on the field. Robinson is 69. In fact, three members of the Nationals -- batting practice pitcher Jose Martinez, bench coach Eddie Rodriguez and reliever Antonio Osuna -- had to restrain Guillen. Asked if he was going to go after Scioscia, Guillen said, "I was happy I was not the first one in the middle [of the incident]. I didn't know what would have happened. I'm so happy for my teammates that grabbed me to the dugout. If I was in the middle, the story was going to be different.

"Scioscia showed no class, no respect. He was talking to me about respect and class. I really don't care about Mike Scioscia. I have no respect for him any more because I'm still hurt about what happened last year. I don't want to make these comments, but Mike Scioscia is a piece of garbage. I don't care if I get in trouble."

Guillen, who was booed throughout the series in Anaheim, called Tuesday's game a wakeup call for him. He had been in an RBI slump, but he hit a game-tying, two-run home run that day and went 2-for-4 on Wednesday. After he singled in the ninth inning and was erased on a Nick Johnson double play on Wednesday, the crowd again booed Guillen. As he reached the dugout, Guillen tipped his helmet to the fans.

"I want to beat this team so bad," Guillen said. "I will never forget over what happened last year. Every time I play that team with Mike Scioscia as the manager, it always going to be personal."

Source: http://washington.nationals.mlb.com/