Save It For October
Before I start, props to Derek for his top ten response to my top ten list. However clever Derek may be, he can't change this fact. As I write this blog, the Yanks are still in last and the Sox are in first. That's not in dispute.
Now with that out of the way, I want to talk about pitching...more specifically how the Yankees and Red Sox treat their pitchers. It really is night and day. The Sox are extremely careful about how many innings their pitchers throw every year, especially the young guys. I'm sure Masterson, Buchholz, and to some extent even Lester will be monitored very closely. But even the veterans are kept under tight supervision. Rarely will Beckett, Dice-K, or Wakefield go more than seven innings, and their pitch count is closely watched.
But what happens when a pitcher gets injured? Look at how the Sox are handling Dice-K. He goes on the DL two weeks ago, and the injury doesn't seem that serious...a mild rotator cuff strain. But the Sox medical team takes no chances. He's shut down for two weeks, and has only just begun to throw lightly. I think this is part of a bigger picture approach by the Sox. The team doesn't mind resting a pitcher for a month in June or July, especially if it means they'll be fresher in September and October. So Masterson comes up, and chews up some innings while Dice-K properly heals.
That's why Boston is so careful with Papelbon. They will seldom pitch him three days in a row, unless it's October and it's the World Series. That's why Okajima was shut down last year. He takes a break, and his arm responds accordingly, meaning he's fresh for the playoffs. Even Schilling went down for two months last year. But guess what, he was there in October when the team needed him, and that may very well happen again this year.
Now let's look at the Yankees. They want to make Joba Chamberlain a starter instead of a set-up guy. In order to properly do this, you'd think at least a few starts in AAA are in order. But no, Hank (there's no doubt this is Hank's doing) wants Joba to stay in the majors. So he gets to stretch his arm out in front of fifty thousand angry Yankee fans. So far he hasn't made it past the fifth inning, and the Yankees have lost both the games he's started. Aside from the fact Joba hasn't been very effective, does Hank think this is really a healthy way to treat their star-in-the-making. Plus, using Joba for 2 and 4 innings a start stresses out the rest of the Yankees bullpen. I can't see John Henry putting Clay Buchholz or John Lester in this position. As a matter of fact, Buchholz is back in the minors, even though he hasn't pitched all that badly this year.
Maybe Chien Ming Wang stinks in the playoffs because he has nothing left by the time October rolls around. The Yankees rely on 200 plus innings a year from him, while the Sox try to keep thier pitchers under 200 innings a year. C.C. Sabathia and Fausto Carmona had nothing for the Sox in the ALCS last year. How many innings did they throw in regular season? 241 and 215.
So the next time you see a Sox pitcher on the DL, don't sweat it. It's all part of the master plan. Maybe some other teams should look at the blueprint. It seems to be working just fine in Beantown.
Now with that out of the way, I want to talk about pitching...more specifically how the Yankees and Red Sox treat their pitchers. It really is night and day. The Sox are extremely careful about how many innings their pitchers throw every year, especially the young guys. I'm sure Masterson, Buchholz, and to some extent even Lester will be monitored very closely. But even the veterans are kept under tight supervision. Rarely will Beckett, Dice-K, or Wakefield go more than seven innings, and their pitch count is closely watched.
But what happens when a pitcher gets injured? Look at how the Sox are handling Dice-K. He goes on the DL two weeks ago, and the injury doesn't seem that serious...a mild rotator cuff strain. But the Sox medical team takes no chances. He's shut down for two weeks, and has only just begun to throw lightly. I think this is part of a bigger picture approach by the Sox. The team doesn't mind resting a pitcher for a month in June or July, especially if it means they'll be fresher in September and October. So Masterson comes up, and chews up some innings while Dice-K properly heals.
That's why Boston is so careful with Papelbon. They will seldom pitch him three days in a row, unless it's October and it's the World Series. That's why Okajima was shut down last year. He takes a break, and his arm responds accordingly, meaning he's fresh for the playoffs. Even Schilling went down for two months last year. But guess what, he was there in October when the team needed him, and that may very well happen again this year.
Now let's look at the Yankees. They want to make Joba Chamberlain a starter instead of a set-up guy. In order to properly do this, you'd think at least a few starts in AAA are in order. But no, Hank (there's no doubt this is Hank's doing) wants Joba to stay in the majors. So he gets to stretch his arm out in front of fifty thousand angry Yankee fans. So far he hasn't made it past the fifth inning, and the Yankees have lost both the games he's started. Aside from the fact Joba hasn't been very effective, does Hank think this is really a healthy way to treat their star-in-the-making. Plus, using Joba for 2 and 4 innings a start stresses out the rest of the Yankees bullpen. I can't see John Henry putting Clay Buchholz or John Lester in this position. As a matter of fact, Buchholz is back in the minors, even though he hasn't pitched all that badly this year.
Maybe Chien Ming Wang stinks in the playoffs because he has nothing left by the time October rolls around. The Yankees rely on 200 plus innings a year from him, while the Sox try to keep thier pitchers under 200 innings a year. C.C. Sabathia and Fausto Carmona had nothing for the Sox in the ALCS last year. How many innings did they throw in regular season? 241 and 215.
So the next time you see a Sox pitcher on the DL, don't sweat it. It's all part of the master plan. Maybe some other teams should look at the blueprint. It seems to be working just fine in Beantown.
posted by The Grappling Greek at
9:31 AM
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