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Mid summer revival
Published: August 18, 2009
About two weeks ago I told you Moyer’s demotion was not justified. All he has done is lead the team in innings pitched and victories. Yet the second he had a bad day as a result of a questionable call, he is booted to the bullpen, a place he was promised by Phillies GM he would not be when he re-signed for 13 million over the break.
Good thing too, because with Pedro just back into the thick of things, Moyers special “relief” talents were exactly what the team needed today. Martinez stiffened up during a 65 minute delay, and guess who strolled in to cheers to relieve the Cy Young winner with 18 outs still needed to secure a victory ? That’s right, probably the only guy in MLB who could do it. And he threw in a couple hits as well ! Moyer dropped his ERA to 5.22 and raised his batting average to .293. Oh yeah, and the Phillies won again.
The Phillies continued their offensive onslaught against the rest of the league with 12 hits in support of the tag team pitching effort. It just goes to show you you don’t need to teach an old dog new tricks ! Sorry Jamie, but look at the facts. He holds the record for being the oldest Phillie pitcher to record a victory, and he did that three years ago ! He is the oldest Phillies pitcher to get a hit, he did that last year. Then he became the oldest Phillie period to get a hit. His wins and hits this year are just stretching out records he already owns, and no one else will ever top. He is also the oldest pitcher to pitch in the NLCS and World Series. He got his first win against Steve Carlton, remember him ? And he is currently the oldest active player in Major League baseball. With 251 wins he ranks 44th on the all time list. So how about a little respect ?
I said before, and I repeat now and hope someone tells Charlie Manuel, this guy deserves to be in the starting rotation. Sure his ERA is a little high. His fastball a little slower. But remember, he had a horrible April, his ERA peaking near 8 in early May, so a 5.22 shows remarkable improvment late in a pressure filled season. The guy knows how to win games, and he has been consistently winning for longer than Manuel has been coaching. Let him pitch !!! What is wrong with a 6 man rotation ? You are entering a brutal stretch of games, trying to hold on to a lead, with suspect middle relief pitching and a closer that is self destructing. I would think a 20 plus year veteran would be precisely who I would send to the mound every chance I get. I mean, it is not like the Phillies are unable to provide some run support, is it ?
5 Comments on "Mid summer revival"
BigGreek24 on Wed, 19th Aug 2009 9:11 am
If Moyer’s demotion was unjustified, who would you have suggested the Phillies put in the bullpen? Hamels, Blanton and Lee weren’t going anywhere and Amaro said Happ wasn’t going to the pen, either. Moyer hasn’t pitched well pretty much all year against anyone not named the Marlins or Diamondbacks. I’m glad that Moyer pitched well last night as I’m a big fan of his, but numbers don’t lie. He has 10 wins as a starter mainly because of run support. I do believe he’ll get other chances to start because of the lack of days off the rest of the way, but you can’t be serious that you want him to pitch as a starter as often as they can throw him.
joseph on Wed, 19th Aug 2009 9:56 am
I agree with you on his ability level, my point was that a promise was made by ownership and management, or the 46 year old likely would not have resigned with the ballclub. The Phillies picked up 2 pitchers and moved Happ out of the bullpen, after promising Moyer he was not going there. They created this problem with their team management, and I understand they are trying to win games. I was suggesting a 6 man rotation after the Martinez signing which would have correlated to 5 more starts for Jamie til the end of the year. Then they could have made the decision and he could have retired, rather than be a middle reliever against his wishes. Win games, but don’t alienate plyaers and fans alike. We don’t need another Eagles situation !
BigGreek24 on Wed, 19th Aug 2009 10:14 am
Jamie had 22 chances to prove he belonged in the rotation. I understand the “promise” that was made, but things change over the course of a season. The issue with a six-man rotation is it puts everyone off their normal schedule which you don’t want, either. I think Moyer will get a few more starts, but I do like what he adds to the bullpen – a guy who can go for a while, like what the Mets had with Darren Oliver back in 2006.
joseph on Wed, 19th Aug 2009 10:46 am
He gave up more than 4 runs twice in last 9 starts. So you think we should pay him 6.5 million to throw 81 innings ? That’s what Oliver did for ‘06 Mets. Moyer started year horribly I agree, so did Joe Blanton and he turned it around. Hamels has given up more than 4 runs 3 times in last 9 starts.
If Hamels and Moyer are similar performers last 6 weeks, and Blanton had just as slow start as Moyer did, why discriminate against the old guy?
Oliver was SIGNED to pitch relief, and he did good job, not sure the role is worth 6.5 mill, all three Phillies pitchers I reference here make 4.4 to 6.5, have records around .500 and ERA’s that have been moving between 4 and 6 mostly for the three.
You can take a high point or low point on any of the three statistically to prove a point, and in doing so they are all horrible !! But overall picture if you ask me is that these three are about equal. Blanton has slight edge. Moyer had a committment, I just like to see the integrity of the game not get overtaken by greed and politics.
BigGreek24 on Wed, 19th Aug 2009 12:02 pm
I’ll take my chances with Hamels or even Blanton over Moyer any day of the week. Hamels was your #1 before Lee arrived and you’re not going to put him in the pen because of one bad season. He could put it together at any time. Blanton already has. Moyer for the past two seasons, three counting this one, gives up more hits than innings pitched and usually has an era right around 5.00. Last year, although really nice, was not typical for Jamie. He is a 5th starter at best for any ballclub and you simply aren’t going to pitch him as a starter in favor of either Hamels or Blanton.