Dodgers took the pitcher out, and took the fun out
Full disclosure: I grew up a Dodgers fan.
That's not why I hated what happened in the eighth inning Friday night in San Francisco, when the Dodgers pulled rookie Ross Stripling while he was throwing a no-hitter in his major-league debut, then proceeded to blow the lead and the game.
I just hated it as a fan of the game (and a former pitcher), and the majority of fans who immediately took to Twitter hated it, too. (Except Giants fans.)
What I hated even more was listening to the apologists on the Dodgers' network who unwaveringly supported manager Dave Roberts' move. (Luckily for most people, the Dodgers' network is not available to them these days.)
Orel Hershiser said it would've been "irresponsible" to leave Stripling in the game. In-studio analysts Jerry Hairston Jr. and Tony Gwynn Jr. supported the decision, too, pointing out that Stripling had Tommy John surgery two years ago, had thrown a limited number of innings last year and this spring and had reached 100 pitches on the night.
"At the time I was like, 'Please Dave don't take him out'," Hairston said, "because I was thinking with my heart. You know I wanna see this guy fight, fight 'cause he fought to get to the big leagues and now has a chance to fight for a major-league no-hitter. I wanted him to stay, but after looking back and listening to Orel Hershiser break it down ... I have to side with Orel Hershiser ...
"I know fans are heated, I understand your disappointment — I'm disappointed — it's just you gotta think not just for this game but for the season and Ross' career."
Even Stripling said it was "the right call", which led the in-studio team to declare the rookie mature beyond his years and the controversy put to an end. Good night, everybody!
And this is exactly why baseball can be so maddening.
Don't get me wrong, I love baseball. But baseball is stuck on stupid in many ways, and the people who are the closest to it will look you in the face and tell you why, against all common sense, it was the right move to pull a guy who was five outs away from becoming only the second pitcher ever to throw a no-hitter in his major league debut. (Joining the legendary Bumpus Jones!)
Not because he clearly was out of gas. Or because he was hurt. No, here's Roberts' reasoning:
"We made that decision before the game. The most he threw in spring was 78 pitches. He's coming off Tommy John, he threw 70 innings last year. At 100 pitches, that was our number. ... I want to keep his future and health in mind. I made that decision if somebody gets on base, we're going to go to (the bullpen)."
Yep, a pregame decision to limit a 26-year-old pitcher who had elbow ligament replacement surgery two years ago to a completely arbitrary pitch count. Because Roberts has to look out for his future and health.
Sorry, but we're all grown-ups here. Let the rookie make a decision for himself. Walk to the mound and ask if he wants to try to finish the inning. He earned a chance at history.
It's one thing to pull him if it's your best chance at winning the ballgame. But it's another thing completely to spoil the show in the name of a pitch count.
FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal addressed the whole notion of "magic numbers" for pitchers last fall when Matt Harvey's innings were an issue.
Harvey was less than two years removed from Tommy John surgery, and Rosenthal questioned how anyone can put a number on what's safe and what's not.
Earlier this year, Rosenthal wrote a column titled "Baseball execs can't lose sight of the human element in making decisions" and cited Mets manager Terry Collins' decision to leave Harvey in during Game 5 of the World Series — even though it backfired.
Now, Roberts' decision with Stripling isn't a case of analytics; it's ageless, homespun baseball wisdom. But it lacks that same "humanity." The humanity that you see in the Golden State Warriors as they go for the record of 73 wins, rest be damned. That you see in Conor McGregor asking for a rematch against the guy who just beat him up. Champions are champions because of their heart, not because of how they were managed.
Stripling said the smart thing, but he wanted a chance to finish it. Anyone would. Just ask another former Dodgers rookie pitcher.
Look, baseball, I'm not asking you to start flipping bats and giving the game over to a bunch of Bryce Harpers. But you've got to get off your high horse. I may not know as much as Orel Hershiser, but a fan doesn't have to be an expert to recognize when his team blows it. Dodgers fans have been watching that for almost 30 years.
Once upon a time, Hershiser pitched with a rubber arm and made magic.
Now Hershiser is here to tell you why you won't see any magic. On a channel you probably can't watch anyway.
They took the rookie out, and took the fun out.
