I'M SORRY BUT IT'S SCARY
just how right I've been. Which is to say just how bad a field manager slow Joe is. The Yankees lost this game because Torre went to Proctor for the third time in as many games and his velocity was down 3-5 MPH. And why did Joda feel compelled to do that? Because having burned half his bullpen needlessly in a game Pettite was winning, he had no back up left for the novices he was starting on the weekend. Like yesterday's game, Torre lost this one on Friday night. I mean if Pettite can come back and pitch 2 days later, he sure could have stayed in the game when we needed him.
Having said that, it's not like Joda's decisons tonight didn't stink as well. When he brought Petitte out for the sixth he surely must have expected that since Andy was facing Youkillis and Ortiz, and since Andy pitches away from contact and doesn't mind putting people on base, that he was in for a 20 pitch performance anyway. When Pettite got through the inning in just nine pitches, why not bring him back to face Manny and Drew. Does anyone know just how much trouble Manny has with left-handers? He's really pretty bad against them, which is why the Sox have had trouble generally against southpaws. Manny is no better against them than Ortiz, or Drew for that matter. Instead old knee-jerk Joe goes to Proctor, again, because he's the person he always goes to, which is why Proctor can look so bad at times, like tonight. Status quo Joe was not even deterred at Manny's lifetime .375 Homer Average off of Proctor (8 at bats, 3 dingers). Nor was he deterred by the 22 pitch outing Proctor had yesterday. If Manny's 2-out single (9 at bats, 13 total bases) didn't convince Torre that Proctor should be pulled, how about Drew's 2-out wall banger on a pitch 6 inches wide of the strike zone. If Proctor has his normal juice that pitch is unhittable. NO, Joe waits for the inevitable big fly to admit the disastrousness of his bullpen choice. If he just had to take Pettite out, well, Vizcaino didn't pitch yesterday. Why not bring him in in the seventh? Why not bring Henn in earlier, when he could have done some good. Why is Craig Britton up here if you have no intention of using him?
It's like he's challenging his players: you think you can win despite my complacent stupidity, try this blunder on for size and see if you can overcome it. I mean did you see the meatball that Drew hit out of the park after Manny's bomb? Wright's evening should have been over right then and there. We should have to had to wait for the single fattest pitch I've ever seen thrown in anger, the lob to Varitek before switching horses. In every single game Torre's bullpen decisions cost the Yankees at least one run and in 2 of the games that was the margin of victory.
Of course the fact that these games were so close is part of the frustration. The Yankees could actulally have swept the series despite the huge differential in starting pitching. And boy would that have been a statement. As it was, they did in fact put a hurting on each of Boston's big three. Six against Schilling in seven, six against Dice K in seven, all earned, 5 against Beckett in 6.1, 4 earned. Boston had to come from behind in each of these games, which is weird considering their huge advantage in the rotation right now. The Yankees made Schilling look as ordinary as he in fact is these days, they made Beckett look as ordinary as he was last year, and they made Dice-K look as ordinary as he might turn out to be. But Boston was able to come back in each game, which is weird considering the Yankees theoretical advantage in the bullpen, an advantage only Dodo Joe could render quite so nugatory in practice. Torre has the reputation of blowing out his bullpens over the course of a season. He's contrived to blow this one out over the course of April and without any meaningful wins to show for it.
Having said that, it's not like Joda's decisons tonight didn't stink as well. When he brought Petitte out for the sixth he surely must have expected that since Andy was facing Youkillis and Ortiz, and since Andy pitches away from contact and doesn't mind putting people on base, that he was in for a 20 pitch performance anyway. When Pettite got through the inning in just nine pitches, why not bring him back to face Manny and Drew. Does anyone know just how much trouble Manny has with left-handers? He's really pretty bad against them, which is why the Sox have had trouble generally against southpaws. Manny is no better against them than Ortiz, or Drew for that matter. Instead old knee-jerk Joe goes to Proctor, again, because he's the person he always goes to, which is why Proctor can look so bad at times, like tonight. Status quo Joe was not even deterred at Manny's lifetime .375 Homer Average off of Proctor (8 at bats, 3 dingers). Nor was he deterred by the 22 pitch outing Proctor had yesterday. If Manny's 2-out single (9 at bats, 13 total bases) didn't convince Torre that Proctor should be pulled, how about Drew's 2-out wall banger on a pitch 6 inches wide of the strike zone. If Proctor has his normal juice that pitch is unhittable. NO, Joe waits for the inevitable big fly to admit the disastrousness of his bullpen choice. If he just had to take Pettite out, well, Vizcaino didn't pitch yesterday. Why not bring him in in the seventh? Why not bring Henn in earlier, when he could have done some good. Why is Craig Britton up here if you have no intention of using him?
It's like he's challenging his players: you think you can win despite my complacent stupidity, try this blunder on for size and see if you can overcome it. I mean did you see the meatball that Drew hit out of the park after Manny's bomb? Wright's evening should have been over right then and there. We should have to had to wait for the single fattest pitch I've ever seen thrown in anger, the lob to Varitek before switching horses. In every single game Torre's bullpen decisions cost the Yankees at least one run and in 2 of the games that was the margin of victory.
Of course the fact that these games were so close is part of the frustration. The Yankees could actulally have swept the series despite the huge differential in starting pitching. And boy would that have been a statement. As it was, they did in fact put a hurting on each of Boston's big three. Six against Schilling in seven, six against Dice K in seven, all earned, 5 against Beckett in 6.1, 4 earned. Boston had to come from behind in each of these games, which is weird considering their huge advantage in the rotation right now. The Yankees made Schilling look as ordinary as he in fact is these days, they made Beckett look as ordinary as he was last year, and they made Dice-K look as ordinary as he might turn out to be. But Boston was able to come back in each game, which is weird considering the Yankees theoretical advantage in the bullpen, an advantage only Dodo Joe could render quite so nugatory in practice. Torre has the reputation of blowing out his bullpens over the course of a season. He's contrived to blow this one out over the course of April and without any meaningful wins to show for it.
posted by joe valente | 11:06 PM
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