More Bullpen Info
Let me just start off by saying that I hope Jeff Suppan didn’t think to ask for more than one great playoff start when he sold his soul to the Devil. Also, I don’t know whether to hope for a rainout tonight or not. A rainout means that Tommy G. gets an extra day’s rest, which is good. It also means a day off to recuperate for a Cardinals bullpen that got taken to the woodshed yesterday; plus the possibility that La Russa could start Carpenter at home tomorrow on three days rest, where his ERA is under 2.00.
In any case, here’s a look at the bullpen usage we’ve seen so far:
What, exactly, this tells us I have no idea. It seems like Guillermo Mota is getting a lot of work, even though I don’t think he’s been exactly lights-out. Of course, these numbers are a bit deceiving, since we’ve had two pretty close games, followed by two blowouts. Darren Oliver really saved the Mets’ bacon on Saturday, and all on only 72 pitches.
My one complaint about last night’s game is that I really wanted the Mets to force La Russa to burn one more reliever. Froot Loop pitched wonderfully, and by getting through the final three innings, he let Tony save both Kinney and Wainwright for today. You gotta kick the Cards’ bullpen while they’re down; and even if all you do is force La Russa to bring in Wainwright for a couple of outs (he was warming up in the bullpen when Jose’s brain went on vacation) that might help you later. Maybe Wainwright would be just a little bit more tired today; or maybe that meaningless AB in the top of the 9th is what gives Delgado another look, and a better read on the Cardinals closer in a situation that isn’t so meaningless.
But what do I know about pitching? Hey, I’m 11-0 against the wall.
posted by The Pirate @ 4:22 PM
1 comments
1 Comments:
You've been waiting to use that Bull Durham pic since you started this blog, haven't you?
I fail to understand Willie's current fascination with Mota. Yes, he has a wicked fastball/changeup combo, thanks to some help from Peterson and LoDuc, but that just makes him the poor man's Heilman. I'll be very curious to see if Willie calls on Aaron more in the rest of the series. I hope so.
As for the Cards bullpen - interesting usage figures, but inconclusive. They're probably not tired. But more important may be the psych damage we inflicted Sunday. This bullpen, which is a bunch of rookies and Looper, had been crap for most of the year, but thanks to the Padres' belief that you only need to get men to first or second, the Cards thought they were hot shit. Now we've reminded them that they are lukewarm.
Favorite quote from Willie on Sunday night was regarding Delagado's hitting: "The Big Man always comes through."
So here's the next question for you Pirate - Did Trachsel give up? Did he yank himself out of the game? Considering how long he's waited to be in the postseason, I doubt it, but it sure looked like it.
Meyatch
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