Roch: Decisions Still Pending

[wildbillhiccup]

12 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

I'm confused why you refer to one or two people's opinion as "this board?" Asking for a friend.

I'm also confused why you seem so concerned over how people view Roch all the time? Asking for a friend.

Are you the one that told Roch "the Hangout" was bashing him? He contacted me last week and went about thrashing me for allowing people to badmouth him and asked me to tell people on here that he's "easy to find" and for people like Frobby to "tell him to his face" if they have a problem with him. I just tried to calm him down, but he was irate and then de-friended me off Facebook as I sat there confused since I hadn't even seen the thread he was so upset about.

Maybe people like yourself and others ought to know that we have many opinions on here and there is no "board" opinion. Everyone has a right to their opinion here and unless they cross the line of attacking press/players/coaches/front office people with names, they can have any opinion they want.

We've never stopped anyone from having an opinion, and there is no board opinion of anything.

 

Wow just wow. I'm really at a loss for words. If he's really this thin skinned then perhaps he shouldn't have picked a profession that puts him in the public eye. 

[Tony-OH]

I think a lot of these guys are going through what I originally went through years ago and with Twitter it's even worse. They were used to putting stuff out and the only interaction they had with the public was probably a few e-mails. Now, they get to have everyone second guessing them and with the world full of trolls online, it's become a really mucky place out there.

I can remember when the Hangout really took off and suddenly we had so many people posting regularly that I could't keep up. All of us are human, and as humans, we sometimes have bad days and when someone pushes your buttons it's hard to just walk away (virtually). There were times when I didn't handle a situation as well as I could have, but then there were times that the people on the other side were just trolls looking for attention. 

The one thing I can say is that I've always given second and sometimes third chances. Anyone who has apologized or asked for a second chance has been let back on. I really don't hold grudges, especially against particular posters. Now are there people who i feel back stabbed me over the years? Yep. But even a few of them have asked to come back and I've let them back and moved on. 

Hell, SportsGuy when he was Rshields97, said crap about my wife and kids but he apologized and I let him back on. See, i realize that people make mistakes, and that it;s real easy to let your emotions get the best of you in a post, and e-mail or text. Hell, I've done it. 

So when you see some of these guys get testy, remember, it's not always easy to work hard at something only to have some people attack you for your thoughts or work. I know at some point I had to be talked to by trusted people to tone things down. I took their advice and over the last 4-5 years I think I've banned about 4 people, maybe and perhaps only 1 or 2 was become they got personal with me.

We all have good and bad days, and it helps to have a guy like @weams who has my back and the boards best interests in mind at all times. It also helps to have a great, great community of diverse posters. As always, you guys make this the place that it is and I'm thankful for that all the time.

[wildbillhiccup]

15 minutes ago, Tony-OH said:

Now I have no idea on who he bans since I don't read his comments section and really only read his blog when people here post things, but I will say that I've had people say the same thing about me and it wasn't true. I've never banned a person for not agreeing with me. I have banned people who want to act like a troll or who can't have a decent conversation back and forth.

It's a very fine line sometimes between allowing freedom of speech but not allowing your board/comment section to turn into an internet wasteland full of trolls. 

We've had very strict moderation here and that's for good reason. There's a reason why this board is still a place where you can make a comment and not have to face troll-like behavior. 

This board has posters like yourself, webbrick, Frobby, Wildcard and Can of Corn, all of which are pretty different in their opinions and how they come across, but all continue to be part of this community because they stay within the rules.

I love the fact that this board has so many different viewpoints. I love the fact that we have so many different kinds of people. I love the fact that we don't allow politics to be mixed in so it doesn't screw our conversations up. And mostly, I love that this is a safe place where you can have a good conversation and get good information about our favorite baseball organization.

Night and day, Tony. I've never thought that way about you. 

[Tony-OH]

7 minutes ago, interloper said:

He's EXTREMELY sensitive. Guys like Meoli have lapped him three times over in both voice and utility. It's probably time for him to move on. That said, he's consistent for that morning coffee reading. I don't hate the guy, he's just kind of a goober who doesn't really bring anything to the table. 

Meoli has become really, really good. I don't know him all that well, but I've come to respect his reporting.

[wildcard]

21 minutes ago, Frobby said:

I am sorry you got yelled at for something I wrote.    I don’t feel any need to tell Roch anything to his face, as I’ve never once posted anything on the MASN site.   He must be pretty sensitive, as I think I’ve been pretty mild in my criticism and I’ve also given him credit for things over the years.   But I’ll continue to express my opinions here in reaction to things he writes that are germane to our discussions, unless you tell me I shouldn’t.   

I think Roch is in a pretty tough spot right now.

He is feeling out what his new bosses want him to do.   That is the Angelos brothers as well as Elias.   Where is the line for him that he should  not  step over.

He has no doubt  lost a fair amount of his sources with the changes is the O's organization.    The national media is scooping him on Orioles news quite regularly.

The Sun is cutting staff.   Dan Connolly moved from his own site the The Athletic mainly to do feature pieces.

The MASN dispute could be closer to settlement then its has been in years.   The money that may need to be paid could be unsettling as well.

There is just a lot going on in Roch's world IMO.   On top of all that when he gets criticized it may get under his skin a little more then it normally would.

I'm just sayin'.

[TheOtherRipken]

Unlike some posters I like Roch, I actually read his blog daily.  With that said he chose in his career to be a semi-public figure.  If you choose that as a profession and cannot take criticism, you chose the wrong profession. 

[Tony-OH]

11 minutes ago, Frobby said:

I am sorry you got yelled at for something I wrote.    I don’t feel any need to tell Roch anything to his face, as I’ve never once posted anything on the MASN site.   He must be pretty sensitive, as I think I’ve been pretty mild in my criticism and I’ve also given him credit for things over the years.   But I’ll continue to express my opinions here in reaction to things he writes that are germane to our discussions, unless you tell me I shouldn’t.   

No worries Rick. I'm not really worried. Roch and I have had what I thought was a good relationship over the years, but the way he went after me over something on my board showed me the respect he really had for me. I've always been respectful to him and always felt he was a good guy, but his actions spoke volumes to me.

I don't need to waste my time with anyone who has that kind of disrespect for me. I'm pretty comfortable with who I am and how I treat people, and although I might mix it up occasionally with folks, its never personal and I don't take into other threads. 

Life is too short to worry about what everyone thinks of you on the internet. My family, friends, the good quality posters here at the Hangout, and the people I talk to throughout baseball are the ones who's opinions I really care about.

I figured out long ago that I will never be able to make everyone agree with me or like me. That's ok.

As for you, I never really got what ticked him off over your comment as well. Clearly you are one of the ones that I never have to worry about and you have free reign to say what you want because I know you understand and follow the rules. You have always been a huge part of this community and I thank for being a Hangouter.

[wildbillhiccup]

27 minutes ago, interloper said:

Also, what's he gonna do if someone DID say something to his face? Punch a guy and get embroiled in a potential charge? Risk getting suspended from MASN? No. Of course not. 

Plus he's top heavy so just get him off balance a little and he'll tip right over. 

That's such a strange reaction for a grown professional man to have and it speaks volume (to me).

[Frobby]

Thanks, Tony.  I went back and looked at everything I’ve written about Roch over a couple of years, and while I’ve been critical of certain things, most of it wasn’t that harsh.    Basically my criticisms have been that he’s not a very aggressive reporter (both in terms of digging for scoops and asking the tough questions) and that he sometimes leaves it unclear whether he is reporting a fact or stating an opinion.    Frankly, I wouldn’t expect him to be super aggressive in criticizing the team, considering who owns MASN.   That’s not even a criticism of him, it’s just the position he’s in.  

[NCRaven]

One observation that I'd makie...  This past season has brought out a lot of the worst in people, both here and on other sites.  I've seen a lot of aggressive and personal comments that I rarely saw in the past.  Some of it directed at media folks, some at front office people, and some at other posters here on the Hangout.  Just my 2 cents.

[Luke-OH]

This board is definitely not anti-Roch. 

I’m not anti-Roch, nor am I pro-Roch, and I think that’s where 95% of us are.

I understand Roch has a tough job and is limited by his situation writing for the team rather than about the team. Also, the difficulties of producing some content everyday. I couldn’t do that job, I respect anyone doing it.

But respecting someone doesn’t mean they can’t be criticized in a reasonable way. That happens here, and there is nothing wrong with that.

I’ve had him react to me in a poor way on Twitter before, I chalked it up to the stress of dealing with trolls, I didn’t take it personally. Roch reacting poorly to Tony about things on this site is unfortunate. I do agree that he is likely under stress but I think that’s an unprofessional way to approach the situation. I hope he realizes that by responding negatively he’ll only promote more negative responses. 

 

[Moose Milligan]

1 hour ago, Tony-OH said:

 

We've never stopped anyone from having an opinion, and there is no board opinion of anything.

 

Except Chris Davis.  I think there's a board opinion.  

[Moose Milligan]

22 minutes ago, Luke-OH said:

This board is definitely not anti-Roch. 

I’m not anti-Roch, nor am I pro-Roch, and I think that’s where 95% of us are.

I understand Roch has a tough job and is limited by his situation writing for the team rather than about the team. Also, the difficulties of producing some content everyday. I couldn’t do that job, I respect anyone doing it.

But respecting someone doesn’t mean they can’t be criticized in a reasonable way. That happens here, and there is nothing wrong with that.

I’ve had him react to me in a poor way on Twitter before, I chalked it up to the stress of dealing with trolls, I didn’t take it personally. Roch reacting poorly to Tony about things on this site is unfortunate. I do agree that he is likely under stress but I think that’s an unprofessional way to approach the situation. I hope he realizes that by responding negatively he’ll only promote more negative responses. 

 

This is a great response.  I'm not anti-Roch or pro-Roch either.  He just exists in a certain area, which is to be the beat writer/blogger for MASN, which is owned by the Orioles.  From that, he can only write/report about so much.  

Luke is dead on when he says that he's limited by the situation by writing FOR the team and bringing up content every day, especially in the early part of the offseason where not much is going on.  Now that we've got Elias and Sig in the fold, it's quiet again.

I am sure Roch flips out like that because he is stressed and none of us, aside from Tony, probably understand what a day in the life is like.  I don't think Roch's job is easy, far from it.  But flipping out like that is unnecessary.  

[Tony-OH]

8 minutes ago, Moose Milligan said:

Except Chris Davis.  I think there's a board opinion.  

I think that's a universal opinion! lol

[Moose Milligan]

And @Frobby's like the most diplomatic guy around.  Kinda hard to get upset with anything he's ever said.