Is it the players job to globally promote, or the owners/commissioners? Grienke gets paid to pitch and bring fans to LA not promote fans in Australia. I'd be blunt in saying if I was a pro I wouldn't want to go to Europe for basketball/hockey or any other foreign country trip to start the season. It's just a routine killer and you've already started out on long plain rides.
I'd like to get to a point where players were open and honest. Personality is a reason to get more involved. Boo the hell out of him when he gets on the mound? No reason to get upset at what he says. It's his opinion and it was asked by a reporter.