Tuesday, August 10, 2004
Take him out in the ballgame
Okay, I've figured out what it is that irritates me about Francona. It's not when he pulls the starters, although that is increasingly questionable. It's his unwillingness to have pitchers warming up. I don't blame him for having Schilling start the 6th. I do blame him for not having Adams warmed up when Schilling clearly had struggled to finish the 5th. So bang-bang, the D-Rays are hitting Schilling's meatballs, and there's clearly no one ready to take his place. I know warm up pitches take something out of the arm, but not that much, and Adams is not a critical middle reliever in any case. There's nothing wrong with insurance, y'know. It's not unmanly. It's not emasculating to the pitcher on the mound. It just says "hey, I got your back".
Okay, I've figured out what it is that irritates me about Francona. It's not when he pulls the starters, although that is increasingly questionable. It's his unwillingness to have pitchers warming up. I don't blame him for having Schilling start the 6th. I do blame him for not having Adams warmed up when Schilling clearly had struggled to finish the 5th. So bang-bang, the D-Rays are hitting Schilling's meatballs, and there's clearly no one ready to take his place. I know warm up pitches take something out of the arm, but not that much, and Adams is not a critical middle reliever in any case. There's nothing wrong with insurance, y'know. It's not unmanly. It's not emasculating to the pitcher on the mound. It just says "hey, I got your back".
Well, Daryl, it was me Davin the last time with the anonymous comment, and it's me once again, cos I'm too lazy to subscribe for a proper blog account.
I've turned my focus to the wildcard race as of last week. It's the only realistic route for the Red Sox. If the team starts to get healthy over the next few weeks, things could start looking better. I think Schilling may be ailing slightly, considering that he has had to take injections before games to relieve the discomfort in his foot. That's a concern. Manny's illness. That's another concern. Hopefully, it really is an illness, and nothing more. Apart from that, the hitting is starting to come together a little bit, as hopefully Francona finds the right balance in the line-up.
That's all Red Sox Nation can hope for, for now.
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I've turned my focus to the wildcard race as of last week. It's the only realistic route for the Red Sox. If the team starts to get healthy over the next few weeks, things could start looking better. I think Schilling may be ailing slightly, considering that he has had to take injections before games to relieve the discomfort in his foot. That's a concern. Manny's illness. That's another concern. Hopefully, it really is an illness, and nothing more. Apart from that, the hitting is starting to come together a little bit, as hopefully Francona finds the right balance in the line-up.
That's all Red Sox Nation can hope for, for now.
Singapore Sox Fan
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