It's Not So Bad; Or, How Aaron Laffey Potentially Rescued the Season

by jdudas on Oct 21, 2007 2:21 PM EDT

To get the obvious out of the way, it sucks big time that the Indians now have to win a game 7 to avoid the defeat that Fox, MLB, and the MSM has been yearning for. And, yes, the Sox have all of the momentum, for whatever that's worth (didn't do the Indians much good in game 5, after all).

I haven't gone through the game threads from last night, so I apologize if this was already discussed, but it seems to me that there was one potentially very good result out of last night's game. Laffey completely saved the bullpen last night, in particular Lewis & Betancourt. The Indians now go into tonight's game with Westbrook, Byrd, Lewis, and Betancourt rested and ready. In other words, the Indians have their entire complement of pitchers who have been effective in this series at their disposal for tonight's game. Looked at in this way, a close loss last night would have been much worse for the Indians than the blowout because almost certainly Lewis and Betancourt would have been used (perhaps for multiple innings).

Of course, if Westbrook gets his ass kicked in tonight, none of this will much matter. But I've got a good feeling about Jake. Go Tribe!

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Re: It's Not So Bad; Or,

Discussed to death. He's a hero, we know.

by supermarioelia on Oct 21, 2007 2:23 PM EDT reply actions

Re: It's Not So Bad; Or,

I kind of figured; sorry about that.

Railing against the sacrifice bunt since 2000.

by jdudas on Oct 21, 2007 2:30 PM EDT up reply actions

Re: It's Not So Bad; Or,

Ah no worries, was a nice description.

by supermarioelia on Oct 21, 2007 2:39 PM EDT up reply actions

Re: It's Not So Bad; Or, How Aaron Laffey Potentia

I'd like to see Byrd on the mound today! I bet he'll be pumped as ever to shove tons of crow down the Nation's throat.

by crazymoloh on Oct 21, 2007 2:26 PM EDT reply actions

Re: It's Not So Bad; Or, How Aaron Laffey Potentia

By doing what? Not appearing to be superhuman?

"I love baseball. You know it doesn't have to mean anything, it's just beautiful to watch." - Woody Allen

by vbc3 on Oct 21, 2007 2:38 PM EDT up reply actions

Re: It's Not So Bad; Or, How Aaron Laffey Potentia

is Trot going to start tonight?

by ASP on Oct 21, 2007 2:38 PM EDT reply actions

Re: It's Not So Bad; Or, How Aaron Laffey Potentia

Hell, I'd DH him.

by fleerdon on Oct 21, 2007 4:54 PM EDT up reply actions

Re: It's Not So Bad; Or, How Aaron Laffey Potentia

You don't do that.

Wedge isn't going to change anything. Think Torre, dropping A-Rod to 8th last year.

The last thing the manager wants to do is telegraph to his team that he thinks it's time to panic.

by Jay on Oct 21, 2007 5:10 PM EDT up reply actions

Re: It's Not So Bad; Or, How Aaron Laffey Potentia

May I make an announcement? I give up trying to evaluate actual lineup and game-management decisions. The more I try to understand them, the more I realize I never have known anything about baseball: not when I played it, not when I watch it, not when I write about it, not never. Everything I actually know I've learned from reading a few THT articles. Yo me entrego.

This is all post hoc determinism for me. I'm expressing approval or disapproval with the understanding that my take on the event is totally irrelevant. Permit me, then, to restate my comment:

"Trot Nixon may as well have been the designated hitter last night insofar as he hit, and Travis Hafner did not. On this principle, the reactionary ignoramus in me prefers Trot Nixon to Travis Hafner as designated hitter tonight, in full recognition of the fact that tonight, it could be Hafner who hits and Nixon who fails to do so."

In the future, I'll just make these announcements to the universe in the privacy of my home and take on the karmic consequences myself, rather than attempt to disseminate them among my Internet friends.

Now that I think about it, I really don't get player development, either -- it's something to do with age/level disparities and peripheral rate statistics, right? What the hell am I doing here?

by fleerdon on Oct 21, 2007 5:38 PM EDT up reply actions

Re: It's Not So Bad; Or, How Aaron Laffey Potentia

You and me both, man. We're all just at partial-adulteration levels of BS.

by Jay on Oct 21, 2007 5:48 PM EDT up reply actions

Re: It's Not So Bad; Or, How Aaron

Everything positive posted on this site about tonight's game is good. But it was still diffucult for me to believe that we wont lose in 7. Then God enticed me to browse my tv channel guide, where I discovered game six of the 1986 World Series.

Thats right, the 1986 World Series, game six. Billy Buckner and a ground ball. It's on till 4pm today on ESPN Classic.

This is a sign. LGT!

by GuinPen1 on Oct 21, 2007 3:40 PM EDT reply actions

Re: It's Not So Bad; Or, How Aaron Laffey Potentia

For anyone looking for a time-killer, our latest Esquire piece is online ...

http://www.esquire.com/the-side/blog/baseballblog102107

by Jay on Oct 21, 2007 5:57 PM EDT reply actions

Re: It's Not So Bad; Or, How Aaron Laffey Potentia

I have full confidence in the 2007 Cleveland Indians. We have faced adversity before, and we are better for it. Need I remind anyone of David Dellucci on June 1st? How about Casey Blake's double walk off week? How about Ben Francisco against Tampa Bay? Remember when Quadzilla stuck? Does anyone recall August 31? That was when Ryan Garko hit a seemingly harmless grounder to Juan Uribe. The bounce that ensued sums up our season perfectly. This is our year. This is our time. This is our team. This is the 2007 Cleveland Indians.

Appalachian State-34 Michigan-32.....Oregon-39 Michigan-7

by gahnki on Oct 21, 2007 6:05 PM EDT reply actions