There were two points in the today’s game where I thought Willie Randolph was slow to pull the trigger on pulling a pitcher.
Obviously in the fourth. Three run homers happen, but they usually happen to losing pitchers. Matt Kemp delivered and it was clear this wasn’t Sosa’s game. No reason to let him stay in to give up another run.
The other was in the sixth. The game was still reasonable then, so I can’t see leaving in Scott Schoeneweis long enough to load the bases. If anybody should have a short leash it’s him.
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John, how do the Mets defend having Rocky Horror on the active roster at all?
There are things in his leg that aren’t attached and he’s a shadow of his former self.
It doesn’t take a Bachelor’s of Science in Writing for Television/Radio/Film and a minor in Comparative Religion to do the math there.
DL him and… even if you just called up Collazo from New Orleans, he couldn’t be as undependable as the Horror Show.
From a numbers perspective July 4th was the last time he blew up.
He has had his rough games but he has also had his good ones. He is not that bad.
The point is…
On a contending team without an overwhelming offense, you can really only “afford” to keep one completely unreliable totally-roll-the-dice mop up guy on your staff.
They don’t have to be lights-out like Wagner or Feliciano, you can have guys that are only locks if you only use them very carefully like Heilman or guys that are inconsistent no because of injury or lack of talent but simply youth like Smith…
But Mota and Schoeneweis both, if you get that feeling too with both of them that every other time either comes in something very bad is gonna happen…
And that feeling would be right…
You just can’t have two of that guy on your staff.
When you only have one, you can basically limit that one guy to when things are so bad he can’t make it worse or so good he can’t screw it up.
With two, you can’t.
And of the two of them, Mota and Rocky Horror, one of them can legitimately be dropped onto the DL and hope that if his ligaments don’t reattach in the off-season, you can collect Mo Vaughn insurance on his useless presence.
So you DL that guy.
I wonder if Randolph seeks ANY advice from Peterson…or if it’s offered, and he just doesn’t take it.
Still believe and have since last year that Randolph is a mediocre manager and we could do a lot better in that department. Manuel-
he’s right next to him. LOL ;)Schoeneweis’ ERA at Shea this year is a million-something (actually it’s closer to 10.00). But his ‘road’ ERA is about a buck-something (before yesterdays game it was under 1.00!) And this is with about 20 IP both on the road and about 20 at home. So just save him for the road games. :)
If you can drop Mota, you can use Horrow Show strictly as your lefty match-up guy where he’s gonna hurt you a lot less.
If you can drop Horror Show, you can use Mota strictly as your mop-up guy where he’s gonna hurt you a lot less.
But there’s only seven relievers and… Sele’s the long man, Wagner’s the closer and Feliciano’s the set-up man.
You’re down to four options, Smith and Heilman… who are largely good but a bit inconsistent… and Horror Show and Mota who could go out and mow six guys down or go out and give up three runs on two outs.
It’s the games where you’re losing but only by one or two where carrying two relief pitchers simply because you’re paying them too much really bites you on the butt.
Those games are really where you need that BP depth.
Ideally, if Pedro comes back strong…
Sosa becomes your locked-in longman, Sele slots in as a second longman who can come in on some shorter situations… Wagner’s your closer, Feliciano’s your set-up man and then…
Heilman, Smith and someone else round out the middle innings utility duty.
If that someone else is a situational lefty, maybe Smith becomes more of a situational righty.
If that someone else is a power borderline setup man, maybe Smith becomes something more like the mop-up man.
But you gotta get out from under one of those two guys.