It's walk-off-a-riffic!!!
Everybody loves a Dodger win, especially when it propels the Blue into an NL West leading tie with the Diamondbacks, but when said win is 100% certified "walk-off-a-riffic"... well, that win, as Reverend Lovejoy would say, is just "super." Such was the case with last night's 7-6 victory over the Phillies, dramatically clinched in the ninth's bottom by a Nomar Garciaparra solo shot. Had anyone turned off the game after the second inning, however, the odds of being in position to pounce would have appeared small. Brad Penny's three inning start featured just as many home runs allowed and double the number of runs.
Upon his exit, the Dodger relief corp leveled things out as the Dodgers began slowly nipping at their rivals' heels. A Manny two-run homer here. An Andre Ethier solo jack there. Then came the real jolt, a two-run double from Jeff Kent in the eighth frame to bring about a 6-all squared up match. (That Kent guy, by the way, has been pretty damn money of late, in a history defying sort of way.) Scenarios like these are made for heroes. Cue Nomar. Cue ball into the bullpen. Cue a bunch of Dodgers hoisting Nomar on their shoulders in celebration of a seriously big box score.
Russell Martin may not bat eighth forever, but last night's stint in that low spot may have helped him regain some form. According to Joe Torre, it's all about increased patience.
As the world- which seems to revolve around Manny's hair- turns. He's gotten a request from his Skip and if need be, he'll get another.
Your Dodger health- or lack thereof- update. Although Takashi Saito remains hopeful that his inclusion in this category can change.
The only thing topping "Walk-off-a-riffic" would be "sweep-a-riffic." The quest begins with Hiroki Kuroda's battle against Brett Myers.
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From the Times' piece on last night's game:
"'He didn't feel great,' Torre said about Penny but added that there were no plans to take him out of the rotation at this time. Penny wasn't available for comment. The clubhouse was closed longer than usual after the game, with General Manager Ned Colletti and team physician Neal El Attrache seen walking in."
Maddux.
Posted by: pl | August 14, 2008 at 09:47 AM
I read the article about Broxton, but I wish the guys there had shown their work. If his ERA is higher in ninth-inning closer situations than it is in non-closer situations, that’s an indication that the seat-of-the-pants feeling we all have about Broxton is probably right. He just doesn’t seem to perform as well without Saito behind him. Even last night was a non-save situation, and he responded brilliantly. But if the Dodgers had taken the lead in the bottom of the 8th, does anybody on this site doubt that he wouldn’t have had such a n easy time of it? I don’t think so.
Small differences in ERA make a huge difference in the closer role, because relievers only pitch one inning at a time. Any time they let up a single run, their ERA balloons. So a 4.18 ERA as a closer is probably not very good, and significantly worse than a 3.5 ERA, or even a 3.71 ERA. But Broxton’s closer appearances are really too small a sample size to measure anything.
Measuring saves converted (and blown) is a slightly better way to gauge closers, but even that has its shortcomings. Armando Benitez was one of the world’s great closers in terms of percentage of saves converted. But put him in a tight game with playoff implications and the guy blew up. Nobody has a problem saying he didn’t have the closer’s mentality.
Saying Broxton is as good a closer as Billy Wagner doesn’t particularly impress me. Wagner is another guy whose ball gets straighter as the situation gets tighter, and routinely fails to win the important games.
In all sports, some guys want the ball in their hands in the 9th inning, the fourth quarter, or the final minutes of the game. Some guys don’t. To me, Broxton seems like a guy who doesn’t. That’s why I suggest trading him while he’s at the top of his value, before other teams learn that he’s little more than a fat Guillermo Mota. Perhaps there’s a team with a decent shortstop who wants a young pitcher who throws in the 90s. You could then sign Frankie Rodriguez to close and put Kuo in the setup man’s role. That’s a lot of firepower in the back of your pen, from both sides of the mound.
But those are discussions for 2009. For the time being, I would continue to use Kuo in the closer role as often as possible, with Broxton coming in only when Kuo had already pitched two days in a row. Neither guy is an ideal closer, so getting Saito back is going to be key.
How great is it to have Nomar back in the lineup instead of Berroa. All of a sudden, it’s a formidable offense 1-8.
Posted by: SaMo | August 14, 2008 at 09:54 AM
Excellent points samo, but I would keep him as a set up guy... in that role he produces. I would try and find a closer for next year though
Speaking of next year, I would hope that FAJ works out the entire off season. He owes it to us the fans to come back in adonis type shape. If he fails then, you cant blame him for not working hard. I think that was half the reasons for the boos this year. He just showed up fat and out of shape. It wasnt just the money. It is that stupid smile when he strikes out. He should come back looking like he worked out every day, and if he strikes out etc, he should act pi$$ed of and look like he cares. He might get the fans on his side next year.
does anyone know....is schmidt signed through next year?
Posted by: dave m | August 14, 2008 at 11:02 AM
Schmidt is signed through next year in the final year of the ridiculous 3 year 39 million million dollar deal Colleti gave him I believe. He brought Schmidt and Tomko from SF and both players were/are waste of money.
SaMo
I don't believe F. Rod. is a Marino Rivera type money closer. Why do people still call him K-Rod. His strikeouts are down, his walks are up. He saves alot of games with 2 or 3 run leads and the Angels seem to be padding his saves numbers. He had a great postseason as a set up guy, never as a closer. I tend to remember him from Ramirez's walk off 3 run bomb against him.
Posted by: Tom | August 14, 2008 at 11:31 AM
Schmidt is signed through next year.
On Andrew's "stupid smile when he strikes out": some people, in anxiety-producing situations, reflexively smile. Jones strikes me as that sort of person.
Posted by: pl | August 14, 2008 at 11:33 AM
Broxton chokes far too much to be a closer. I honestly think it is impossible for this guy to come into a close game and NOT put the first batter on base.
Posted by: Rufus Leaking | August 14, 2008 at 11:45 AM
Tom:
There is no such thing as a Mariano Rivera type closer. There's Mariano and there's everyone else. The guy has a postseason ERA of 0.77. He's blown 1 save in 35 chances in October. Those numbers aren't Gibsonesque, they're not Koufax-esque, they're not even humanesque. He's in a class by himself.
But there is an echelon of relievers right below that, guys who will win you one or two World Series championships (not four, of course), and that class definitely includes K-Rod. You don't need to strike guys out to be acloser; you just need to get them out. Rivera's most devastating weapon was his cutter, which caused even burly men like Mike Piazza and Ken Caminiti to hit weak Juan-Pierre-like grounders to second base.
Other closers I'd put in this second tier include Saito (though age seems to be catching up with him), Troy Percival (ditto), Trevor Hoffman (only the all-time saves leader, but still Scott Brosius's bitch), and Papelbon.
There's a category below these guys, of players who usually save games, but come up short when the whole enchilada is on the line. I'm thinking Brad Lidge, Billy Wagner, Jason Isringhausen, Joe Borowski, and Gagne (post steroids; a few years ago, I'd have put him in the higher echelon). These guys deceive you into thinking they're playoff closers, but then let you down in October.
Anyway, the point is K-Rod is far and away the best closer available this off-season, and well worth the money at just 26 years of age. Plus it would be a nice poke in the ribs at the Angels to steal their closer.
To me, Broxton might almost be more valuable as a starter. It would take some doing to convert him next season, but look at what the similarly fat kid in New York did with his 100-mph heater (no, not the getting hurt part, the lights out pitching against the Red Sox part).
I'd make Brox a starter and get K-Rod for the pen, with Kuo serving as the 8th inning guy.
Posted by: SaMo | August 14, 2008 at 12:14 PM
First off, I want to say I am a huge Broxton guy- I love his mental toughness and the fire he brings to the mound. With that being said, a comparison to Joba isn't fair at all as far as their qualifications to be a starter.
Chamberlain has four plus pitches: He uses great arm actionand has great control of fastball at 93-98 on the gun. He likes to mix in an average to above-average changeup of 80-83 to give top-tier hitters a different look. Chamberlain’s best strikeout pitch is his 10-to-4 plus slider that stays low. He also throws an a slightly above average curve- backdoor to lefties.
Broxton's repertoire is pretty much all heat, with sliders away from right handed batters and to the back leg of lefties. He doesn't have enough of a variety of pitches and probably not enough stamina to navigate line-ups consistently for 6-7 innings. Keep him in the pen and aquire a reliever in the off-season...
A change of scenery might do CJ Wilson wonders, especially in a more pitcher-friendly park than Texas. Given his struggles this year, his price had to have dropped...
Posted by: Simon | August 14, 2008 at 12:55 PM
Broxton no like the way this is going.
Broxton throw harder.
Broxton stop eating cheesy crust double pepperoni pizza.
Broxton like Samo, Samo no like Broxton.... make Broxton sad.
Posted by: Benzo Jones | August 14, 2008 at 01:32 PM
Re: Broxton as a starter
Wasn't Broxton originally a starter back when we drafted him? I thought we converted him to a closer/set-up man somewhere down the line...
Yes he was - I found it...from the OC Register dated Friday, August 25, 2006 (nearly 2 years ago):
"Primarily a starter in his professional career until the middle of last season, Broxton was converted to relief out of concerns about his stamina as a starter. But Broxton says he has grown to prefer the “adrenaline rush” of relieving and says becoming a closer in the future is his goal. But he doesn’t hedge when asked if he thinks he could assume that role next season."
Posted by: Brian | August 14, 2008 at 01:37 PM
Brox is a great 8th-inning guy. he's just not a great closer. It would be a mistake to rely on him as your closer. But if he's happy being an 8thinning guy (and making 8th inning money), I'm happy to leave him where he is.
Posted by: SaMo | August 14, 2008 at 01:55 PM
Maybe Ox can develop a change. I don't think his sample size as closer is large enough to include him in the big groupings. As for the closers in today's MLB, I do agree that you have to put Mariano in a class by himself because of his remarkable postseason record. I think the second tier over the past few seasons, in no particular order, would be K-Rod, Nathan, Papelbon, and Saito. Third tier would be Wagner, Lidge, Soria, and Putz.
Posted by: The Dude Abides | August 14, 2008 at 03:00 PM
I would puke if the Dodgers signed "K-Rod." Weird motion, jerky delivery, walks, flamboyant attitude, he's got it all.
Posted by: Steve M. | August 15, 2008 at 11:13 AM