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Chat Reel: SI's Stephen Cannella
Short rest for pitchers play a role in playoffs
Posted: Thursday October 18, 2001 1:48 PM
Sports Illustrated baseball writer Stephen Cannella joined users Oct. 18 for a postseason chat. A transcript follows.
CNNSI.com Host: Welcome to our postseason baseball chat with Sports Illustrated's Stephen Cannella. Thanks for joining us, Stephen.
Stephen Cannella: Hi everyone.
From Guest: If you had to win one game right now, which pitcher on the teams remaining in the playoffs would you want to take the mound?
Stephen Cannella: Right now, Curt Schilling. I saw both of his starts in the division series. They were two of the best-pitched games I've ever seen. Schilling is a big-game pitcher and he loves pitching in those tense situations. He's my choice right now.
From Guest: How do you think Freddy Garcia will pitch Thursday on three days' rest?
Stephen Cannella: I think he'll pitch OK. Freddy is still young, and in some ways is still a raw power pitcher, so his timing and his feel might be off a little bit due to the short rest. But I think he's evolved far enough where he can still give the Mariners six or seven good innings. This is a watershed postseason for Garcia. He has the stuff to be a premier ace, and this a good opportunity for him to demonstrate that he deserves that tag.
From Guest: So many pitchers seem to go on three days' rest in the playoffs. Shouldn't teams give pitchers a chance to do this in the regular season so they can adapt to it for the postseason? Most of the fifth starters shouldn't be in the major leagues anyway.
Stephen Cannella: Well, that's just the way the game has evolved. And today's pitchers, for whatever reason, can't seem to hold up in a four-man rotation all year. But, you're right, it does present a problem in the playoffs when you're asking pitchers to change their routine and do something they haven't done all year. When Tony LaRussa was asked if thought about bringing Matt Morris back on three days' rest, he said he thought it was criminal to do that to a pitcher if he had been pitching on four days' rest all year. That's just La Russa's opinion. But in recent years, the track records of pitchers going on three days in October is not good.
From Guest: What has happened to Bret Boone? Was his season just an aberration, and now that's he's facing tough pitching we're seeing the real Boone?
Stephen Cannella: I don't think his season was an aberration and Boone is certainly a much better player, than he's shown in the playoffs. I think his biggest problem is that he's trying to do too much right now. He's trying to end his slump by hitting a five-run homer every time he's at the plate and he's chasing bad pitches and overswinging at fastballs that he should hit.
From Guest: Is Tony LaRussa the most overrated manager in baseball? He won one World Series with the A's when they should've won more, and the Cardinals are rarely a factor in the playoffs.
Stephen Cannella: Certainly, LaRussa has managed enough good teams to have won more than one World Series. He did make some questionable moves in the Division Series against the D'Backs. I think he left reliever Mike Matthews in too long in Game 3. And he was slow to use his bullpen at a few other points in the series as well. None of them were huge mistakes, but they were enough to make you question what LaRussa was doing. Then again, his team went to a fifth game and only lost the Series because Curt Schilling pitched as well as he could possibly pitch. You can't blame LaRussa completely for the Cardinals' loss. But he definitely doesn't have the infallable, genius reputation he once did.
From Guest: Do you think the A's just got over-confident and took the Yankees for granted, or is New York just the better team?
Stephen Cannella: I don't think the A's got over-confident. I think they tightened up under the pressure of closing out the series. The A's are, I think, are the better team talent-wise, but the Yankees proved in that series that raw talent only gets you so far in October. Oakland lost because it made fundamental mistakes at key moments, like errors on defense and base-running mistakes. Teams like the Yankees never let you get away with mistakes like that.
From Guest: Why do you think there were so many empty seats at Bank One Ballpark for the first two games?
Stephen Cannella: Actually, Game 2 was a sellout. But that was the first game of the postseason that soldout in Arizona. It is a mystery. Here you have a team in its first-ever LCS and they're having trouble selling tickets. Part of it may be timing. For some reason, Game 1 of the LCS began at 1:00 p.m. Phoenix time. Part of it might be pricing. Some tickets at Bank One that are normally $11 during the season have been jacked up to $50 during the playoffs. Part of it might just be that Phoenix is not a sophisticated baseball town. As Curt Schilling put it yesterday, Phoenix is in its adolescence as a baseball city.
From BondsFan: In the wake of Barry Bonds' impending free agency, it has been made public that the Giants will offer him a "take it or leave it" offer. Are they nuts? They are willing to just give away a guy like this, who'll put up equally as good numbers over the next three seasons, to a team like the Yankees or Mets? Can you add some perspective on this matter for me?
Stephen Cannella: To tell you the truth, I think Bonds is nuts if he thinks there are going to be a bunch of teams dying to throw $20 million a year at him. Let's face it, Bonds is 37 years old, and I don't care how many homers he hits this year, teams would be taking a huge risk by committing a huge chunk of money to him for the next four years. Plus, there aren't that many teams out there that can afford him. The Yankees, for example, will probably spend much of their time this winter chasing Jason Giambi. This may be just the first step in the Giants' negotiating process, but if they let Barry walk, and save money that can be sunk into other parts of the team, they might be doing themselves a favor in the long run.
From Guest: How healthy will Roger Clemens be for his start Sunday?
Stephen Cannella: From what I hear, he'll be OK. He wasn't as dominating as he can be in his last start against the A's, but his injured hamstring didn't seem to bother him too much.
From Guest: Do you think the hype about Ichiro is getting out of control? Yes, he's a great hitter and a great outfielder, but he's just a singles hitter.
Stephen Cannella: True, he's not a huge power-hitter, but that's not really his job for the Mariners. His job is to get on base and steal bases, and he's done that as well as anyone. Believe it or not, there is more to the game than just bashing home runs. I think what Ichiro did this year is especially impressive considering he's playing in a brand-new country. Don't forget that he's an excellent outfielder with one of the best arms in baseball. I know the mania can get a little annoying at times, but I think he deserves every bit of it.
From Guest: Do you think Javy Lopez will continue to be a factor? Would you agree that his presence alone is a big boost for Atlanta since he's such a huge upgrade over Paul Bako?
Stephen Cannella: Yes, his presence is very important. First of all, he gives the Braves another potent bat in their lineup, something they desperately need. I think he gives them a psychological boost as well. Several Braves talked yesterday about how nice it was to see Javy return to the lineup, and then hit that big home run. He has performed very well in the postseason in the past. I think as long as he can stand on that sprained ankle, Bobby Cox will put him in the lineup.
From freda13: What is your opinion on how both series will play out?
Stephen Cannella: I think they are both going to be long series. I expect the Braves and D'Backs to go six or seven games, and I think they'll all be very low scoring. Neither of these teams is very good offensively. I think the Yankees and Mariners will be close as well. But a small part of me thinks the Yankees could win a bunch of one-run games and close it out in five.
From Guest: Do you think all of the long-distance travel will take a toll on the players?
Stephen Cannella: I know it takes a toll on the writers. No question the travel schedule is tough for the players. But they're used to living out of a suitcase and they're used to playing games after getting into a city in the wee hours of the morning. I honestly believe that at this time of year, they're able to ignore distractions like travel. Adreneline should get them through these games even if they're lacking sleep. And both teams are on the same travel schedule, so it shouldn't give anyone a competitive advantage.
CNNSI.com Host: That's all the time we have for today. Thanks for joining us, Stephen.
Stephen Cannella: Thanks, everyone.
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