Former Viper Morgan Says T-Plush Is Here To Stay:

Former Vernon Vipers defenceman, Nyjer Morgan understands what got Giants fans so riled up Friday night and promised to be more careful in the future. But Tony Plush isn't going away. Morgan played with the Vipers as an "AP" during the 1996-97 season.

This is posted on the Brewers website:

Morgan says T-Plush is here to stay

By Adam McCalvy / MLB.com | 07/23/11

SAN FRANCISCO -- Nyjer Morgan understands what got Giants fans so riled up Friday night and promised to be more careful in the future. But Tony Plush isn't going away.

"I'm still going be me," Morgan said.

Plush is Morgan's alter ego, a self-described entertainer prone to plate collisions, wall-crashing catches, spirited postgame interviews and the sort of stuff that got Morgan in trouble with the fans Friday night. He made a terrific catch in the seventh inning of the Brewers' 4-2 win, banged into the wall and then made what looked very much like an obscene gesture toward the bleachers.

Morgan has made the motion before, signifying the number of outs in the inning, but said he will "clean that part up" to avoid future incidents. He was booed the rest of the night and expected to be booed again as the series continued Saturday.

"I'm not going to tone anything down with what I do, but I have to understand what to do and what not to do," Morgan said. "I'm still going to play with the same energy and the same intensity."

Umpire Joe West had a word with Morgan on Friday night and so did Brewers manager Ron Roenicke, who would prefer that Tony Plush tone things down a bit. Roenicke said he has had a "more than a couple" of similar conversations with Morgan this season.

But that's a fine line, Roenicke said, because the energy is part of what has made Morgan such a hit with Milwaukee. He entered Saturday hitting .326 and had emerged as the primary center fielder even before Carlos Gomez fractured his collarbone earlier in the week.

"Sometimes you want to say something to him and then you'll kind of think about it," Roenicke said. "Maybe I'll ask Jerry [Narron, the bench coach] or one of the other coaches, 'Hey what do you think?' You want to get somebody else's opinion. That stuff bothers me, but I want to make sure it bothers other people also, if I'm going to have that conversation."

He's consulted veteran players like Craig Counsell and Mark Kotsay, too.

"It's not like it's all malice when he's doing things," Roenicke said. "You have to [think about] how he's looking at things. This whole thing with Tony Plush, he thinks he an entertainer. There is a point to it [where it's too far]. You have to be a little careful."

Roenicke added, "He's going to do it again. I think he knows what he should and shouldn't be doing, and sometimes it just takes awhile to where it's less of a habit. You don't react with fire in your veins. It may take a little bit longer."