There are a lot of reasons to dislike the Los Angeles Dodgers. Spend any length of time around the team and the organizational arrogance is palpable. The Dodgers didn’t invent baseball. They just act like they did much of the time.
But to hate on them for protecting one of their most valuable assets, and for following a predetermined plan designed to compensate for the lack of preparation time this spring (a result of the Owners’ lockout) is, well, simply wrong.
The baseball world seems to be almost evenly split on whether or not LA should have removed pitcher Clayton Kershaw after seven innings in a game in which he had yet to yield a base runner. Typically if a guy has a chance to make history by throwing a perfect game, he gets that chance. But this season – especially in the beginning stages – is anything but typical.
The half that are outraged that Kershaw was removed before he could make baseball history are ill-informed and…simply wrong.
It’s true that Kershaw had thrown “just” 80 pitches in the frosty Minnesota air, striking out 13 while putting the Twins down in order seven straight times. Minnesota did manage a single hit against the bullpen, but LA won the game 7-0.
Winning is the biggest thing for a team that won 106 games last season and still didn’t win the National League West. In order to get back to that point – and beyond – this fall, they’re going to need to keep their starting rotation – not as deep as it’s been in the past – completely healthy. And with Kershaw, that’s been a huge challenge.
Sending him back out there to try to finish a game they had well in hand was to invite another injury.
Remember, the future Hall of Famer – who’s had a myriad of injury issues in the recent past – didn’t pitch in last year’s postseason because of an elbow injury. He also didn’t touch a baseball until January – smack dab in the middle of the Owner’s lockout – and had far less prep time this spring during an abbreviated training camp. His outing in Minneapolis was his first one of the young regular season.
During a typical spring, the 34-year-old Kershaw – and every other MLB starting pitcher – would have been making an exhibition game start at this point. Look around the game in mid-April. You’ll see most starting pitchers being removed before completing even five innings. None – even those not coming off injuries – are throwing 100 pitches yet. Kershaw being pulled after 80 pitches is not going against the grain. In fact, it could be argued that they left him in too long, all things considered.
This is where the Reggie Jacksons and others start railing against pitch counts and all that. Analytics will get the blame when analytics had virtually nothing to do with this decision.
It was simply common sense.
Now…if you want to start griping about the bigger picture…about pitch counts and the way starting pitchers are handled these days, dig deeper. What you’ll find is a generation of pitchers who are victims of youth baseball’s pay-to-play system.
The baseball-for-profit folks – and there are hundreds now around the country – are the reason teenagers are pitching almost year ‘round, throwing too many pitches and getting elbow surgeries before they can shave. They are the reason that pitchers arrive in the college and pro ranks often already damaged goods, needing to have pitch counts and be monitored so closely…so they won’t overdue it anymore and break down. Again.
Every arm has a pitch count of its own. Today, too many of those pitches are being wasted by overzealous youth coaches desperate to win weekend tournaments. Too many kids are being asked to play baseball in the spring, summer and fall…and even in the winter where it’s warm enough. Baseball was never supposed to be a year ‘round sport. But try telling that to the “travel” and “club” team coaches that have their own agendas and profit margins to be concerned with.
They are the reason professional organizations need pitch counts.
What the Dodgers did with Kershaw in Minnesota was the right thing to do…as Kershaw himself noted after the game. It’s about the long run, not some additional short term glory for a guy who really doesn’t need it.
Find another reason to hate on LA. Don’t worry. There are plenty of legit ones out there.
Be sure to catch Mark Knudson and Manny Randhawa on the Park Adjusted Rockies Podcast each week, available on all major Podcast platforms.
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