Leyland grumpy: good
posted in 2007 season, Analysis |Just a few quotes from Jim Leyland lately show he’s as sick of bad play as the rest of us, and (I hope) he’s not going to take it any more. He’s pretty much telling guys they will produce or they’ll finish out the year in Toledo.
On Fernando Rodney’s return:
“He’s going to have to pitch good,” said Leyland before Wednesday’s game with the White Sox. “I want that in bold print. He’s not just going down there and going to come back when he wants to come back. He’s going to have to go down there and show that he can pitch and show that he is healthy. That’s what he’s going to do and that is what the rest of the guys are going to do around here.
“We’re going to run the thing. He’s not going down there on some kind of vacation to say, ‘OK, I’m fine,’ after one outing. He’s going to show us that he’s healthy and can pitch back-to-back. Period. That’s the end of the story.” (Tigers.com, hat-tip Ian)
On pitchers walking too many batters:
“If you can’t throw strikes up here, you can’t pitch up here,” Leyland said.
“You’ve got to change, or we’ll look elsewhere.
“If you’re picking and picking because you’re afraid of a bat, you might as well go home.” (Detroit News)
FYI: Jason Grilli leads the bullpen with 19 walks. (Chad Durbin has more but served as a starer). But Tim Byrdak has the highest walk rate, and Zach Miner’s not too far behind him.
I suspect Miner is the one Leyland put on notice, which makes sense, even if you don’t like Grilli much.
Leyland claims he’s happy with his bullpen and expects no trade deadline moves, but I don’t even begin to buy that one.
Sphere It
[...] allow Fernando Rodney to walk back into the Show from Toledo whenever he feels like it. Instead the skipper says Rodney will “have to pitch good.” He also notes that pitchers have to be able to [...]
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