Another reason why learning about baseball players from the backs of baseball cards is cool. The back of his “2013 Topps Opening Day” card says,
C.J. has been called “the most interesting man in Baseball.” He can recite poetry in four languages; he practices Eastern philosophies and a gluten-free diet; and he’s an expert in postmodern art.”
We need more interesting people like this in baseball. A guy who likes art and baseball? He should check out my art blog, spudart.org.
He recently took these photos in Chicago:
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You can follow him on twitter, @str8edgeracer and his website, leftylefty.com.
Who are the most interesting players in baseball today? CJ Wilson is one, who are the others?
— Matt Maldre (@57hits) May 17, 2013
C.J. Wilson is an “expert in postmodern art”? He needs a blog about postmodern art. Outside of photography, he really doesn’t mention postmodern art in his twitter profile. He gives a laundry list of interests.
I’m going to give it a try following him on Twitter. Though I’ve found following professional athletes to be quite a bore. It ends up being largely a narcissistic exercise, like listening to a teenage girl talk about herself all day long. Though Topps does call him the most interesting man in baseball.
C.J. Wilson’s website is very narcissistic. http://www.leftylefty.com He’s got photos of himself all over the header. I mean, I get it that the website is about his celebrity. But I thought his interests are supposed to go beyond his celebrity. I’d rather see his site designed to be more about what he’s interested in, than images of himself all over the place. But I guess that’s what happens when you are the spokesman for a shampoo company.
ESPN ran an article in 2008 that talked about C.J. Wilson’s interest in politics and why ballplayers don’t pay attention to the 2008 presidential election, “Major league ballplayers should care about this election.”
Here’s a paragraph:
“It’s frustrating,” says C.J. Wilson, the 27-year-old Texas relief pitcher. “I’d say there are two reasons. One, there’s a general lack of education among us. But two — and most important — you’re talking about a population that makes a ton of money, so the ups and downs of the economy don’t impact whether we’re getting paid. Therefore, we often don’t care.”
It’s nice to hear C.J. Wilson have that perspective.
Another interesting paragraph from that article:
“Baseball players are inherently selfish,” says Brian Johnson, the former major league catcher. “Everything is about ‘me.’ People want my autograph, people want to see me, people want to watch my games on TV. Everyone works around my schedule, even my wife and kids. So it’s hard to have a global or national perspective when everything is about you.”