Salisbury: Rich Dubee is helluva pissed at Kyle Kendrick

This does not bode well for the Phillies' fifth starter. Wow.

over 1 year ago WholeCamels 18 comments 0 recs |

Comments

No, it doesn’t. It would be one thing if they had not talked about it, but to throw a meatball when the clear order of the day was to pitch around shows a flagrant lack of either understanding of the game plan or willingness to follow a coaches instructions. Neither are good.

by dannijd on Sep 6, 2010 11:52 AM EDT via mobile reply actions

third option

He very, very badly missed his spot, which is also horrendous.

http://www.thegoodphight.com

by WholeCamels on Sep 6, 2010 11:53 AM EDT up reply actions

I have to believe that this is what happened. Surely he can’t be that stupid.

by SethC on Sep 6, 2010 12:03 PM EDT up reply actions

Actually, now that I read the thing, this stands out:

"It’s all my fault," Kendrick said. "I was just trying to stay aggressive and minimize the damage. It’s my fault. You learn."

Maybe it’s just a poor choice of words, but aggression (at least, the variety that Kendrick brings to the table) was the last thing that situation called for.

by SethC on Sep 6, 2010 12:07 PM EDT up reply actions

It was that statement

That made me think that the pitch was a mental, not physical error.

by dannijd on Sep 6, 2010 12:19 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions

2 thoughts:

1. Kudos to KK for admitting his mistake, taking ownership of it and not giving some weak excuse

2. When did KK decide he was CC Sabathia and could overpower someone with a Fastball right down the middle of the plate? Being aggressive is fine, but being delusional will not do you any favors.

by Cormican on Sep 7, 2010 3:26 PM EDT up reply actions

credit to dajafi, elsewhere

Who pointed out the Eaton-ness of this particular quote:

“I made two bad pitches,” he said. “I made some great pitches. This was the best I felt in a long time.”

http://www.thegoodphight.com

by WholeCamels on Sep 6, 2010 11:56 AM EDT reply actions

haha

that does sound just like something Eaton said often. The good thing for Kendrick and the Phillies is that this time they aren’t paying him a crazy amount of money like they were with Eaton.

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by Chris Haines on Sep 6, 2010 3:29 PM EDT up reply actions

While KK is a below average pitcher he is unlike Eaton in that he takes criticism and works hard to try to get better. That of course doesn’t win him a spot on the rotation Maybe this is a far as he can go. However when a coach pubicly calls a player out when the manager never does then I think the player is justified to say something on his behalf. even if it sounds ridiculous. Dubee just put poured a blood bank into the shark feeding frenzy that is already happening with KK’s pitching.

by j reed on Sep 6, 2010 4:48 PM EDT up reply actions

As hard as it is to realize...

Kendrick is also partially right. The pitch to Fielder was a VERY bad decision and a VERY bad pitch… but it was surrounded by good pitches and good decisions. But at the end of the day, it was another very bad performance, and Kendrick definitely did not help to put his team in a position to win.

by dannijd on Sep 6, 2010 6:02 PM EDT up reply actions

I recall commentary in late July 2008 when the Phillies were playing the Padres that KK had a sit down with Moyer and Greg Maddoux and he came away with it with “Be more aggressive! Pitch to contact!”

Which is great when you’re an actual sinkerball pitcher who can manage a respectable strikeout rate, but this is not KK’s profile. I’m really torn over how to feel about KK, on one hand he’s provided a cheap serviceable option in the 5 slot, but this cannot last. You kinda want to thank the guy, then he does this kinda stuff. Ungh.

"I remember being three and I wanted to be a baseball player, that's all I ever really wanted to be. That and Spider Man." -Raul Ibanez

by Jose and the Contrarians on Sep 6, 2010 1:00 PM EDT reply actions

Dear Dubee,

What, so you think KK is making you look bad? It’s not like you haven’t been blessed over the years to work with some of baseball’s most gifted arms, who, let’s face it, needed minimal coaching. Currently, with your stocked rotation of Halladay, Hamels Oswalt and the resurgent Blanton, you ought to have considerable time to work with KK, who, unlike the arrogant Adam Eaton’s of the world, is willing to learn and works hard. Now, I don’t believe in coddling players, but publicly throwing them, even the less talented ones like KK, under the bus, no matter how deserving, isn’t Manuel’s way you asshole. This is your fault for not choosing Figueroa over Kendrick when you had the chance. Remember how Figgy didn’t measure up to your “rotation guy” metric. If your too inept to help KK, or if this is truly the limit of his abilities, then at least show him a modicum of respect by not to feeding him to the wolves. Bumbaclot..

by j reed on Sep 6, 2010 1:08 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs

This

I really, really dislike when coaches call out players in the media. It was one of the things that I truly loathed about Bowa, and I love that Manuel doesn’t ever do it. I hope Charlie has a chat with Dubee about it.

by phatj on Sep 6, 2010 1:42 PM EDT up reply actions

I hate the idea of calling a player out, especially right after a bad loss has everyone feeling edgy. But I wonder how much Dubee was really calling Kendrick out and how much is the interpretation given by Salisbury. I only see about two lines with quotes from Dubee, one was “Bad miss” and the other one dealt with where Ruiz was set up. No quote about how Kendrick disobeyed instructions or that he’s about to lose his spot in the rotation. That seems to be the article’s spin. This could be a case where all parties on the team can agree that it was a misunderstanding. And maybe next time, if you want to walk a player of the caliber of Prince Fielder, you make it clear that’s what the plan is.

by phillyinportland on Sep 6, 2010 6:01 PM EDT up reply actions

True.

by dannijd on Sep 6, 2010 6:06 PM EDT up reply actions

Agreed. While Kendrick may have been told not to pitch to Fielder in that situation (and obviously meatballs would not be on the menu even if he was pitched to), it was wrong for Dubee to call Kendrick out publicly.

One thought (in the unusual mindgames department)… perhaps this was an attempt to drop Kendrick down a peg or two mentally— he pitched really well for several games after being demoted and reinstated, like he had something to prove. Now there may not be anything to this, but maybe Kendrick will come out playing as if he has something to prove against the Mets.

by dannijd on Sep 6, 2010 6:06 PM EDT up reply actions

KK has always gotten the shit end of the stick. Why wasn’t dubee calling out Blanton before?

Personally I think Dubee is overrated and been wanting him gone for a while.

by Easedel on Sep 6, 2010 1:39 PM EDT reply actions

History and his recovery from injury may have been giving Blanton a long leash.

I also wonder (and it is really unclear from the article), how strongly Kendrick had been told to pitch around Fielder in that situation. If he was clearly told that, and Dubee felt that Kendrick was acting defiantly, than perhaps I understand calling him out more— it is more about attitude than performance.

by dannijd on Sep 6, 2010 6:08 PM EDT up reply actions