Mariano Rivera was brought into the All Star game in the 8th inning with his American Conference team leading 3-0. Rivera usually pitches one and only one inning, the 9th, which he starts. Thank you Tony LaRussa for establishing this junk with Dennis Eckersley in Oakland and St. Louis.
So why did Rivera pitch an inning early. According to The New York Times writer David Waldstein:
It was A.L. Manager Jim Leyland who arranged to have Rivera enter in the eighth rather than risk saving him for his usual role in the bottom of the ninth. Leyland’s fear was that if the N.L. rallied in the bottom of the eighth, took the lead and closed out the game in the top of the ninth, Rivera would never get in.
____________________________________
What? Jim Leyland was the Pittsburgh manager of Barry Bonds through 1993 who often batted Bonds fifth. Leyland could have used Joe Nathan in the 8th. Even if Nathan put the first three batters on base, there is no way he could have let the National Conference take the lead without Leyland replacing him with Rivera.
Apparently Leyland is so unimaginative and/or locked into the LaRussa closer orthodoxy that the idea of using the man who supposedly is the greatest relief pitcher in the history of the galaxy with runners on base never even occurred to Leyland.
Rivera, like Eckersley, will ride that horse into the Hall of Fame with barely more innings pitched than Babe Ruth (1,221). Rivera has 1,254 including 34 this season and he probably won't pitch more than another 30. Rivera last pitched 70 innings in 2008; fewer since.
2009 66
2010 60
2011 61
2012 8 (Injured)
This closer thing is a joke. In Rivera's last full season CC Sabathia was the only Yankee pitcher with over 200 innings: 237. Rivera's 61 amounts to 26% of Sabathia's.
162 games multiplied by 9 innings equals 1,458 innings. 61 divided by 1,458 = 4.2%. That's what Rivera impacts, 4.2% of the innings pitched by his team. And he doesn't even enter with runners on base.
What a joke.
No comments:
Post a Comment