O's clubhouse quotes
Some comments from the O's after today's 6-5 loss to Boston:
Brad Bergesen - did you have enough left to pitch the ninth? "I don't know about that, I mean, I would always like to go back out there and if I did I was going to battle. But, you know, skip made the right decision, George and JJ have been stellar all year long. Those are the two guys you are going to go with."
Brad Bergesen - on his 8th-inning conversation with Trembley "Skip came out and he asked me if I was tired or needed to come out, or whatever, he asked me if I wanted to get this hitter. I told him I wanted this guy at the time."
Ty Wigginton on Bergesen: "Bergy has been outstanding it seems ever since the day he got here. He's fun to play defense behind and it's a shame he could not come out with a W."
George Sherrill on the 9th inning struggles: "A pitch was up to Ellsbury and he started it off. Then I couldn't find the zone. On 3-2 I think Varitek went, I think everybody knew it but the two guys that mattered. It should have been over then. Still, you had to put that behind you but I wasn't able to do it."
George Sheriill - have to move on past this: "There is no reason to dwell on it. Just make the bad ones few and far between."
George Sherill - was it tough to come back after 25 tough pitches last night?: "No, no, not at all. That's my job to do it over and over again. There is no excuse for it, we just couldn't do it."
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Categories (click for archive)Orioles News | Steve Melewski |
Just heartbreaking. We should have left Bergesen out there. We should have given him the oppurtunity to go for the complete game. As long as Dave Trembley is managing this team, no disrespect meant towards him, but we will never have an orioles starter with complete games. I respect what he has done for us fans, but I digress with Dave Trembley when it comes to managing the game and getting trigger happy with his bullpen.
Steve, Bergy should have stayed in to finish the game. Period. He gives a tactful answer above, but in truth Trembley made an awful decision. Sure, those relievers are usually going to do the job, but every game is different and some games they don't have it (witness Boston's bullpen last night, which imploded, despite using being very solid).
It's always better to stay with a known good, than to roll the dice. Sure, most of the time bringing in Johnson is going to work, but everyone has an off day now and then. Bergy dominated the Sox and there was zero reason to take him out of the game. He was still very strong in the eighth, and with a four-run lead he had a little leeway.
Bergy's proven he can go the distance, pitched brilliantly today and was deprived of the win by mismanagement. This isn't the first time this has happened with Trembley, and at some point he should learn from his mistakes and stay with the starter unless there are much better reasons to get the hook than any he had today.
Just terrible, terrible managing--not managing to win, but managing not to lose.
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I think Bergesen should have at least come out to start the 9th. If he gives up something there, then go get Johnson or Sherrill. Bergy was rolling and had retired 15 of the last 17 hitters and one reached on an error. He looked very strong at the end to me. I think if he starts the 9th, he gets three outs and the O's win. Sherrill threw 25 tough pitches last night and it was no suprise to me it caught up to him today. This was one bitter loss especially after Tuesday's win.
Steve
Steve--In your response to Ken Francis, I agree wholeheartedly with you and with Ken's observations.
For those who have played baseball and coached it, they know that an opponent who has been dominated by a pitcher loves nothing better than to see that pitcher removed and be allowed to get a shot at another one. It is like a fresh start.
It was a shame that the bliss die-hard Oriole fans experienced yesterday by the greatest comeback in Baltimore history could not be carried on by another win, a series-winning one over Boston, today.
Steve, I want to back off slightly from the harsh tone, though not the conclusion. I'm sure Trembley felt that JJ and Georgie would be up to the task, as they usually are, but what bothers me as much as the loss is that he took away from Bergy a golden opportunity to grow as a pitcher. Another complete game win, this one against a very tough Boston lineup, would have been a huge confidence builder for Brad and provide another step in his maturation process.
It's not a major setback, as Bergesen pitched eight strong innings and no one can take that away from him, but it could have a special day for him. I still think his future looks very bright and I think people are still underestimating him because he doesn't have electric stuff. While that's true, he has a real idea of what he's doing on the mound, and his stuff is still good enough that I think he's going to be better than a mere 4th or 5th man in the rotation.