This season already for the New York Yankees we have heard stories of three pitchers, Chase Whitley, Chris Martin and now Jacob Lindgren, who have hidden injuries and tried to pitch through them rather than speaking up and getting the issue fixed right away. The pitchers themselves has used the excuse that they thought they could pitch through it and they were just trying to help the team win but I call bull on that, in my opinion these pitchers hid the injuries because of Joe Girardi, his bullpen management and his lack of trust in the younger players on the team.
Girardi took a terrible Joe Torre led bullpen from 2007 and
turned the team’s biggest weakness into their biggest strength with essentially
the same cast of characters. Ever since then and ever since a 2009 World Series
championship and a deep run into the ALCS in 2012 Girardi has done a complete
180 reverting back to the old days. Girardi no longer wants to or shows trusts
in his rookies and his younger pitchers, with obvious exceptions like Dellin
Betances, and would rather rely on the likes of Esmil Rogers, Chris Capuano,
Matt Thornton and others.
The Yankees once had now closer Mark Melancon in their
bullpen and flat out refused to use him more than once a week leaving him rusty
and ineffective. Melancon was later traded and thrived with the Pittsburgh
Pirates and the Houston Astros while the Yankees had Lance Berkman for two
months of a disappointing season. The Yankees also once had David Robertson in
their bullpen and it took three promotions to the major leagues before he stuck
around long enough to work his way into the “Circle of Trust” and eventually
into the Yankees closer’s role replacing Mariano Rivera. The list of players
the Yankees once had, refused to use and over-groomed is extensive and I could
sit here all day listing them off but if you’re a Yankees fan and you watch the
games then you know the names and I don’t have to.
Now you have the likes of Whitley, Martin and Lindgren
hiding injuries and trying to pitch through them. Every once in a while you
have a pitcher that simply wants to help the team and tries to pitch through a
little nagging injury but when you have three pitchers in less than three
months you have developed a pattern. This pattern was caused, again in my opinion,
because they didn’t think or know if they would ever get another shot in
pinstripes under the Girardi regime. If this is the case, and that’s a big if,
the Yankees management needs to start looking at their own when they find
themselves scratching their head this October as they watch the St. Louis
Cardinals or the San Francisco Giants in the World Series again while the
Yankees have gone playoff-less for three seasons now.
Can you say ELF!!!!
ReplyDeleteI can say that when a manager brings his closer in with a five run lead someone, Girardi not the elf, is worried about his job. Girardi is feeling the hot seat which is leading to this.
DeleteDaniel as usual, very salient points and right on the nose!
ReplyDeleteIt is a hard thing when your job is on the line, to not over-use the vets and let the rookies die in the BP. The reason is simple...win at any cost! I have served with guys like that...when your injury record is as great or greater than the results, the sh-t hits the fan.
We here on this blog have discussed the mental aspect of knowing you can get the job done as well or better than those playing every day.
As for the pitchers, I think a player (the Catcher, McCann) would be the guy to step up and tell Joe to trust or lose the trust of his young players/pitchers. Pitching in the big show in this time and age of baseball is tough enough without a player worrying about anything other than doing his job.
I chose McCann because he is the natural leader of the Pitchers/Players and knows them very well. In reality, it is the job of the pitching coach to let (remind) the manager when he sees a pitcher pitching hurt, and if he can't see it...replace him! The pitchers are his responsibility.
He is definitely worried for his job, you can tell by the way he manages. He even got Sergio Santos hurt last night. Now many time did Santos get up and sit down last night in the bullpen?
DeleteToo damn many, and the thing is, he knows better!
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