Nanner
06-24-2006, 04:54 PM
He loves the stability of being in one place, because of his family, and he really pushed for that No Trade clause in his new contract.
A man who loves his kids and his family, and is always thinking of them. :thumbsup:
06/23/2006 12:45 PM ET
Stability most important to Mora
Looking out for six children, third baseman comfortable with O's
By Hal Bock / MLBPLAYERS.com
http://mlb.mlb.com/images/2006/06/16/l7HRmJ5K.jpg
Melvin Mora entered the 2006 season with 103 home runs and 400 RBIs in 860 career games. (Ed Betz/AP)
When third baseman Melvin Mora was negotiating a contract extension with the Baltimore Orioles after last season, nothing was more important than a no-trade clause.
Forget the length of the deal. Forget the money. All Mora wanted from the Orioles was a guarantee that he would stay in Baltimore.
"That is because of them," Mora said, gesturing to two youngsters playing in front of his locker.
Christian and Matthew David Mora and their sisters, Genesis, Rebekah and Jada Priscilla, celebrate their fifth birthday on July 28. The quintuplets were born to Melvin and Gisel Mora a year after their father was traded by the New York Mets to the Orioles. They have lived in Baltimore year-round for all their lives. They know no other home, and their father wanted to keep it that way.
So Mora sought stability in his contract, and the Orioles provided it with a three-year extension that Mora signed in May.
The quints are at an age when they are beginning to understand what their father does for a living. Want proof? Mora is happy to provide it.
"What does poppy play?" the proud father said to Christian.
"Baseball," the youngster answered.
"What does poppy swing?" he said to Matthew.
"A bat," the little boy responded.
Mora beamed at the exchange. This is his family, the two boys at his locker and three girls waiting with their mother outside the clubhouse. There's also an older sister, Tatiana. They are the most important things in his world.
"They mean everything to me," he said.
Mora's baseball roots are in Venezuela, where he also was an amateur boxer and a professional soccer player. Signed by Houston as an undrafted free agent in 1991, Mora drifted to the Mets organization and spent eight seasons playing Minor League ball before making it to New York in 1999 as a utility player.
Mets manager Bobby Valentine liked his quick bat, enthusiasm for the game and versatility. Equipped with a wide smile and the ability to play all over the field, Mora was popular with the Mets, especially after hitting a home run in his first postseason at-bat and throwing out four runners from the outfield during the playoffs that year.
A year later, with New York headed for the World Series and needing a shortstop to replace the injured Rey Ordonez, Mora was packaged with three other players to the Orioles for Mike Bordick. It was a double-edged sword for Mora -- a major disruption in his life, but a chance to play every day.
And that was the key.
Mora seized the opportunity. He hit safely in eight straight at-bats at one point, reaching base in 14 of 15 plate appearances. By 2003, he was an All-Star, batting .317. A year later, installed as Baltimore's full-time third baseman, Mora hit .340, second highest in the American League and the highest average in Orioles history. Mora added 27 home runs and 104 RBIs in 2004 and another 27 homers and 88 RBIs last season.
The success all goes back to that 2000 trade when the Mets needed a shortstop and used Mora as part of the package to get one.
"You don't want to be traded," Mora said. "Whatever happens, happens. It's not fun, especially when you're traded to a team you don't know. I had to sell my apartment. I had to sell my bed. You try to make it positive. You do the best you can with it. But when they trade you, you don't control that."
Unless, of course, you have a no-trade clause in your contract, a little detail Mora took care of in his new deal.
Hal Bock is a freelance writer based in New York
A man who loves his kids and his family, and is always thinking of them. :thumbsup:
06/23/2006 12:45 PM ET
Stability most important to Mora
Looking out for six children, third baseman comfortable with O's
By Hal Bock / MLBPLAYERS.com
http://mlb.mlb.com/images/2006/06/16/l7HRmJ5K.jpg
Melvin Mora entered the 2006 season with 103 home runs and 400 RBIs in 860 career games. (Ed Betz/AP)
When third baseman Melvin Mora was negotiating a contract extension with the Baltimore Orioles after last season, nothing was more important than a no-trade clause.
Forget the length of the deal. Forget the money. All Mora wanted from the Orioles was a guarantee that he would stay in Baltimore.
"That is because of them," Mora said, gesturing to two youngsters playing in front of his locker.
Christian and Matthew David Mora and their sisters, Genesis, Rebekah and Jada Priscilla, celebrate their fifth birthday on July 28. The quintuplets were born to Melvin and Gisel Mora a year after their father was traded by the New York Mets to the Orioles. They have lived in Baltimore year-round for all their lives. They know no other home, and their father wanted to keep it that way.
So Mora sought stability in his contract, and the Orioles provided it with a three-year extension that Mora signed in May.
The quints are at an age when they are beginning to understand what their father does for a living. Want proof? Mora is happy to provide it.
"What does poppy play?" the proud father said to Christian.
"Baseball," the youngster answered.
"What does poppy swing?" he said to Matthew.
"A bat," the little boy responded.
Mora beamed at the exchange. This is his family, the two boys at his locker and three girls waiting with their mother outside the clubhouse. There's also an older sister, Tatiana. They are the most important things in his world.
"They mean everything to me," he said.
Mora's baseball roots are in Venezuela, where he also was an amateur boxer and a professional soccer player. Signed by Houston as an undrafted free agent in 1991, Mora drifted to the Mets organization and spent eight seasons playing Minor League ball before making it to New York in 1999 as a utility player.
Mets manager Bobby Valentine liked his quick bat, enthusiasm for the game and versatility. Equipped with a wide smile and the ability to play all over the field, Mora was popular with the Mets, especially after hitting a home run in his first postseason at-bat and throwing out four runners from the outfield during the playoffs that year.
A year later, with New York headed for the World Series and needing a shortstop to replace the injured Rey Ordonez, Mora was packaged with three other players to the Orioles for Mike Bordick. It was a double-edged sword for Mora -- a major disruption in his life, but a chance to play every day.
And that was the key.
Mora seized the opportunity. He hit safely in eight straight at-bats at one point, reaching base in 14 of 15 plate appearances. By 2003, he was an All-Star, batting .317. A year later, installed as Baltimore's full-time third baseman, Mora hit .340, second highest in the American League and the highest average in Orioles history. Mora added 27 home runs and 104 RBIs in 2004 and another 27 homers and 88 RBIs last season.
The success all goes back to that 2000 trade when the Mets needed a shortstop and used Mora as part of the package to get one.
"You don't want to be traded," Mora said. "Whatever happens, happens. It's not fun, especially when you're traded to a team you don't know. I had to sell my apartment. I had to sell my bed. You try to make it positive. You do the best you can with it. But when they trade you, you don't control that."
Unless, of course, you have a no-trade clause in your contract, a little detail Mora took care of in his new deal.
Hal Bock is a freelance writer based in New York