Jeff Passan Rips Phillies Decision to Not Pitch Lee in Game 4
by NowWhat? on Nov 2, 2009 4:48 PM EST
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http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=jp-leegamefour110209&prov=yhoo&type=lgns
In my opinion, this is one of the dumbest things I have ever read. Joe Blanton one up'd CC Sabathia in every category except runs and innings pitched last night. Cupcakes gave up less hits, struck out more, and walked less than Sabathia (his WHIP was lower, too). The poor offense (and He-who-shall-not-be-named) is what cost the Phillies game 4, not the lack of Lee. Passan has now lost all credability with me. Thoughts anyone?
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Maybe I’m just biased but I find anyone who works for yahoo sports one step above aol fanhouse sports and 7 steps below guys who write for the post
Don't frack with me or you'll get a punch in the kidneys...you've been warned
by jemagee on Nov 2, 2009 5:01 PM EST reply actions
Jay Marriotti went to work for AOL Fan house – I think i’m on good footing here
Don't frack with me or you'll get a punch in the kidneys...you've been warned
by jemagee on Nov 2, 2009 6:12 PM EST up reply actions
Oh i thought you meant equating it with Fanhouse…sorry
Don't frack with me or you'll get a punch in the kidneys...you've been warned
by jemagee on Nov 2, 2009 6:39 PM EST up reply actions
I dont knock the Phills for pitching blanton and not Cliff lee
its just i dont trust Hamels pitching game 7.
To me the Eagles are like that girlfriend that pisses u off, then u hate her, but the next morning you wake up and remember that thing u love so much about her
Could have been a Good Move
If the Phillies had won just one of the last 3 games, starting Cliff Lee for game 5 would look like a good move. A chance to go up 3-2 before heading back to NY.
It still is a good move…the starting pitching is not why the phillies lost games 2 or 4
Don't frack with me or you'll get a punch in the kidneys...you've been warned
by jemagee on Nov 2, 2009 6:39 PM EST up reply actions
On the other hand...
…everyone’s praising the Yankees for their perceived brilliance in going to a 3-man rotation.
But: (1) it’s only made possible by having the biggest, most durable pitcher in baseball; and (2) they almost have to go to a 3-man rotation, because they don’t have a legitimate 4th starter. If the Yanks had a 4th starter the caliber of Joe Blanton, you can rest assured they wouldn’t have gone to a 3-man rotation for the World Series.
I even thought going to Burnett on 3 days’ rest was a bad call. The odds of beating Lee in an elimination game were darn low. I would have gone to Gaudin, even though it’d make our odds worse, in order to have Burnett available on regular rest for Game 6 and Sabathia for Game 7 (I’d prefer short-rest Sabathia to regular-rest Petey).
"When you make your final stand
I'll be right there
I'll never leave
And all I ask of you is
Believe"
It would be sweetly ironic if the Series were to end with Burnett and Pettitte both struggling on three days rest and Sabathia struggling on back-to-back three days rest.
Also, it’s worth noting that Lee’s pitching line last night (on four days rest) ended up being pretty similar to Blanton’s from the night before.
blanton
blanton sucks .. gave up 4 runs .. and we lost cuz we didnt throw lee .. who would of out pitched cc .. he needs pressure .. when he has a 6 run lead he tends to relax and can be hit .. plus more importantly now we have no lee for game 7 n they have cc .. hes absolutly right
An inconsistent coach is far worse than an inconsistent quarterback.(Route 36)
by jack is better than asante on Nov 3, 2009 11:19 AM EST reply actions
Sadly they are – and no one sterilizes them – so they are allowed to breed
Don't frack with me or you'll get a punch in the kidneys...you've been warned
by jemagee on Nov 3, 2009 1:10 PM EST up reply actions
ok, but there is always natural selection
see: darwin awards
by SmilingJPhilsPhan on Nov 4, 2009 11:27 PM EST up reply actions
Lee didn’t pitch all that masterfully last night on full rest; what makes you think he would have had better command on short rest in Game 4? Blanton was not the reason we lost that game. Lidge was.
lol yea my bad…forgot about that last one. I was just trying to prove a point. Does anyone else feel if Shane was in center, he would have made that throw to home on A-Rod
Actually, no
I forget when it is, but his last throw before he was pulled had nothing on it.
I think that if Werth was in CF, he would have had a shot.
I was OK with that defensive substitution. Pulling Vic when he’s injured and you have a six-run lead in the eighth is reasonable. I think flipping Francisco and Werth would have been a somewhat stronger alignment, but that’s really nitpicking.
What is two innings of rest going to matter. I would take him out if he was due up to bat, but defensively he was our best option in center. Also, judging by the 4 runs we gave up as soon as he was taken out, I would say it was a bad idea.
There wasn’t much to be gained by removing him. But there also wasn’t much to lose. The last two innings went about as badly as they could go and we still won because a six-run lead is a six-run lead. That’s exactly why it’s OK to make moves like that under those circumstances.
Not too much to lose? We were only up two with a runner on and one of the more dangerous players in baseball at the plate, in the ninth inning, facing elmination from the World Series. What more could we lose?
You have to judge the decision based on the circumstances at the time it was made. As of the beginning of the top of the eighth, what were the odds that (1) we would lose a six-run lead with two innings to go, and (2) having Ibanez in the game would be the direct cause of #1? I would say slim and none.
Your perception is colored by hindsight. Yes, we came too close for comfort, but that was with everything going just about as badly as it could have possibly gone. The odds of what happened yesterday happening just like it did were extremely small. The odds of something even unluckier happening were even smaller than that.
Lol no I’m not saying it was a terrible decsion to take Shane out, it probably was the smartest option with the lead, but I honestly had a gut feeling when they took him out that it would come back to bite us. Thank god I was wrong, but It did feel like the switch shifted alot of momentum. However, I wouldn’t call what happened luck. It’s the Yankees, as much as I hate them they have one of the best offenses in baseball. They are in the World Series for a reason. A six run lead with two innings left just isn’t a lock to win the game
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