Melewski: What’s with all the Brian Roberts critics?

“There’s just one thing left for you, Mister. A general court martial!”

I can understand that some fans are disappointed that Brian Roberts has not been able to contribute much to the Orioles over the last few seasons. I can get that some fans doubt he can return to the form he once showed or even close to it. I can get that some fans don’t think he can come back at all.

But I don’t get some of the almost nasty comments I see from time to time on various message boards.

I can assure those fans, a seemingly small but vocal segment, that Roberts didn’t get hurt just to tick you off and that he didn’t intend to sign a big contract with the club and then start missing games.

Some fans almost seem to be rooting against him and seem to revel when he makes a mistake like a throw that almost pulled Chris Davis off the bag in the first inning Monday against the Yankees.

I am sure some of the same fans were cheering him when he was cranking out 40- and 50-double seasons, playing solid defense, hitting nearly .300, scoring 100 runs and doing it with an on-base percentage in the high .300s.

Roberts has become a lightning rod for criticism and sometimes it seems to bring out the worst in some fans. He didn’t force the Orioles to sign him to a big-bucks deal, he just played very well as a homegrown player and the team offered him the contract.