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Kelly Shoppach, Not Adrian Gonzalez, Texted Ownership About Bobby Valentine

By Marc Normandin
Cincinnati, OH, USA; New York Mets catcher Kelly Shoppach (6) rounds third base on his way to scoring during the fourth inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Frank Victores-US PRESSWIRE
Cincinnati, OH, USA; New York Mets catcher Kelly Shoppach (6) rounds third base on his way to scoring during the fourth inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Frank Victores-US PRESSWIRE

According to a report by the New York Daily News, it wasn't Adrian Gonzalez who sent a text message to ownership complaining about manager Bobby Valentine, despite claims from Jeff Passan's Yahoo! report on the matter. The Daily News says it was, in fact, Gonzalez's phone, but that the message was sent by the now-traded Kelly Shoppach.

This wasn't some instance where Shoppach stole Gonzalez's phone and impersonated him in order to achieve his goals. Major-league sources told the Daily News that Gonzalez agreed that, coming from his phone given his sizable contract and importance to the club, a message would get ownership's attention. But these same sources state that Gonzalez had no part in the writing or content of the message itself, so, while he was a willing participant in le revolucion, he might not have been dreaming up the kind of Reign of Terror reenactment that initial reports had detailed.

According to Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe, Valentine and Shoppach clashed on the latter's playing time early on in the season, and, based on the whole text message thing, it's probably safe to assume that their relationship didn't repair itself with time.

Coincidence, or no? Shoppach was dealt from Boston the same day the report published.

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