Or at least according to Nyjer Morgan he did.
Not more than two months with the Nationals and Werth is already ruffling feathers. According to Nationals.com, Werth chewed-out former teammate Morgan for running only three of his six outfield sprints after a spring training game:
Werth is also a leader on the field and in the clubhouse. His most vivid display of leadership skills occurred in Spring Training, according to multiple sources.
After he was taken out of a game against the Tigers at Space Coast Stadium in mid-March, outfielder Nyjer Morgan — since traded to the Brewers — performed three of the six sprints on the outfield warning track and called it a day.
Werth told Morgan to do the rest of the sprints. Morgan declined, figuring he arrived at the ballpark at 5:30 a.m. ET and didn't need to do any more work.
After they went into the locker room a few minutes later, Werth and Morgan got into a verbal argument, with Werth telling Morgan that he needed to continue to do his work.
Jerry Hairston Jr. got involved and was able to calm Morgan down. According to a baseball source, Morgan believes the incident is the No. 1 reason he is no longer a member of the Nationals.
Applauding JW for that one. As you know, Nyjer Morgan is a world class prick. He was suspended for – allegedly – throwing a ball at a Phillies fan last year, and also incited this melee in Florida.
Looks like those 126 million bones are turning Werth into a leader (not to imply that he wasn’t one in Philly).
Werth credits Davey Lopes, “the best coach [he] ever had,” with teaching him the right way to play the game:
"Davey Lopes wasn't a hitting coach, but he is a baseball coach," Werth said. "He was really good [when it came to] my overall mentality toward the game and how to play the game. He was very instrumental and kind of molded me into the player I became [in Philadelphia]. Out of anybody, I would say Davey Lopes was probably the best coach I ever had. He is awesome."
And the Phillies let him walk. Lopes, that is.
[And yes, Virginia, you can get from Nyjer Morgan to Chris Pronger in five simple steps]