And hopefully he won't answer!Originally Posted by Unassisted
And hopefully he won't answer!
LeCure couldn't get loose, OK. I don't care. I would take a "not quite 100 percent loose" LeCure over a "clearly-gassed Fisher" in that situation. Dusty needed to veto what the player was saying and put him out there. If LeCure was injured, that would have been a different story. But as a former pitcher, if he was just saying he "couldn't get loose" that just means he felt he didn't have his best stuff. "Couldn't get loose" does not mean "absolutely can't pitch."
The bottom line is that if the Reds could have got through the bottom of the 19th, they are almost certain to win the game. Not only wouldn't Valdez have pitched another scoreless inning, he might have given up 8 for all we know. No way he would have got lucky and tossed another scoreless frame though. Very frustrating that the Reds didn't have more of a killer attitude there knowing that it was the Phillies that were in really bad shape. As bad/depleted as the Reds felt, they should have known the Phils were in a far worse situation.
So they should have thrown an unavailable pitcher in the 19th, risking injury with no guarantee that he wouldn't give up a run? Couldn't get loose means not feeling right. Not "don't have my best stuff".
Again, how was he unavailable? Do you take every word a manager says to the media at face value?
And if LeCure pitches today, that will certainly solve the case. "Can't get loose" does not mean "Absolutely can't pitch." If LeCure said he was hurt, that would have been different.
It's funny when those "unavailable" pitchers get up and start to warm up in the bullpen. The player saying "I can't get loose" is not enough to make him "unavailable" in the 19th inning of a game. Obviously, Dusty felt he was "available" when the game started, or he never would've had him warm up in the first place.
The ridiculousness of the situation makes me believe him. Do you honestly believe that Dusty had a ready to go Lecure in the pen and said "Nah, Fisher is looking good, he can throw 100 pitches today"?
You are right, Dusty would have felt he was available at the start of the game since Lecure wouldn't have known that he couldn't get loose until he tried to.
Phillips took the blame. Who are we to argue with him about it being his fault?
"This isn’t stats vs scouts - this is stats and scouts working together, building an organization that blends the best of both worlds. This is the blueprint for how a baseball organization should be run. And, whether the baseball men of the 20th century like it or not, this is where baseball is going."---Dave Cameron, U.S.S. Mariner
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