Lou Pinella did it. He turned a last-place team into winners. Granted, the Cubs were in the worst division in baseball, but just getting to the playoffs is a huge accomplishment. I'm trying not to get my hopes up too high, but with 99 straight years of futility, I can't get too excited this soon. Playoffs start Wednesday!
6 comments:
I'm not quite sure that they have the NL West beat out in the worst division category. But I'm sure an argument can be made either way.
-HCP
Yeah, you can make an argument for the NL West. And it looks more and more like the NL teams are just fighting to see who can lose to an AL team in the World Series. But last year, the Cardinals had a .500 record in the regular season, and they ended up winning it all. Anything can happen...
Cubs lose.....Cubs lose.
85 pitches? Lou must be losing it.
Lou already said he wants Zambrano to go in Game Four, which will be three days of rest. The last time Zambrano went on three days of rest, he didn't look sharp, so Lou was watching the pitch count. I didn't agree with his decision at first, but Marmol has looked really solid in the last month, so he took a risk (while looking forward to the future) and it didn't pay off. It's easy to be an armchair manager, so I'm just letting him have the benefit of the doubt. Unlike Dusty Baker, who couldn't manage a rotation or bullpen to save his life, Lou went the other direction and was too conservative.
Having said all that .... it WAS a tie game when he pulled Big Z, so it definitely hurt. I just hope we get a Game Four to see him pitch again. Chances are pretty good tonight. After Webb, the D-Backs' starting rotation isn't too deep, and Lilly is much more consistent, and experienced. We'll see.
So the question I have is this: Does the AL's dominance, as of late, of the series make a case for OR against the DH? Don't get me wrong, I like the DH because of what David Ortiz brings to the table, but is that stacking the line up against NL opponents? And another thing to consider, should we get rid of the DH before Bonds gets picked up by an AL team? Because you know there is some team in the AL thats dying to give that asshole $5 million a year to DH and run that god damn home run record up.
-HCP
The DH allows pitchers to pitch until they're tired. In the National League, managers have to decide when to pull a pitcher based on a number of variables, but mostly to when they need to pull them for a pinch hitter in a close game. It requires more strategy. Pitchers in the AL are like kickers in football. If what you do is so specialized that there are separate rules in place to protect you more than the rest of the team, then you're really not a part of the team.
Pitchers, pick up a bat and get up to the plate. Especially if you bean someone ... you should have to go up to the plate and risk taking your medicine like the rest of the team.
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