Posted: Friday, August 29, 2008, 12:55 PM | 21 comments |
 

Hamels Explanation
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Stop poking your Charlie Manuel and Rich Dubee Voo Doo dolls.

It turns out Cole Hamels told the Phillies' pitching coach after the seventh inning that he was running on empty and would have hurt the team by going out for the eighth inning. Hamels had thrown 108 pitches at that point. Though he has thrown more in eight games this season, he said the way his body felt he would have hurt the team by taking the mound in the eighth.

Instead, the Phillies bullpen allowed five runs in the eighth inning en route to a 6-4 loss.

Hamels said he had no regrets about not taking the mound in the eighth, despite the end result.

"I have all the confidence in the bullpen and I knew I wouldn't have been able to get the job done either," Hamels said. "Complete games are great and all that. But the complete games I threw even early in the season, they took a toll on me. I wasn't up to par two starts down the line, so I don't want that to effect me, especially this late in the season when every five days I go out and every game means something and I've got to be able to put in six, seven, eight quality innings where I can give the team an opportunity."

"What can you do?" pitching coach Rich Dubee said. "I'm not going to send a guy out there that says he is done."

Dubee said that he would have sent Hamels out for the eighth unless, perhaps, the Phillies had runners in scoring position with Hamels' due up at the plate.

Greg Dobbs ended up pinch-hitting for Hamels with two out and none on in the top of the eighth.

"With two out and nobody on, he most likely would have gone back out there," Dubee said, "but if he pitched seven quality innings and he said he had enough, he had enough."
Posted by David Murphy @ 12:55 PM  Permalink | 21 comments
21
Comments   
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 1:19 PM, 08/29/2008
    This is such a moot point. He did his job. The other guys didn't. The loss is not Cole's fault, nor Charlie's or Rich Dubee's for removing him. The guys who gave away the game are the guys who gave away the game, and the GM is the guy who didn't get us anybody who wouldn't give away the game. I wonder if Pat Gillick still thought the price for Brian Fuentes was too high after watching that 8th inning, or if he suddenly understood the value of a set up man? Madson is not an 8th inning set up man. Durbin probably isn't either, but it doesn't matter, because his arm is clearly cooked. He has been overworked this year and has nothing left. They needed to replace Tom Gordon, and they didn't get it done, and now we have to live through losses like this. Can't wait until Gillick is gone (and he better be).
    — RollinsWasRight
  • Comment removed.
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 3:51 PM, 08/29/2008
    I just don't get all the sports pundits who say Phillies have such a great bull pen while the Mets' bullpen stinks. Lately it looks the other way around. Mets are doing fine without Wagner.
    — chemlady
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 4:10 PM, 08/29/2008
    chemlady: It is all about stats. The Phils bullpen is supposed to be "great" because they have led the NL in bullpen ERA and bullpen Wins most of the season. The Mets have the 3rd worst bullpen ERA, and second most blown saves. But what the numbers don't show is how the Phillies bullpen relies too heavily on 2 or 3 key guys, and doesn't trust the rest, so they never pitch in pressure situations. However, the Mets bullpen is a train wreck. I am not sure what you are seeing there. They blew 3 of their first 6 save opportunities without Wagner. And he wasn't doing all that great himself, having already blown 7 saves before he was placed on the DL.
    — RollinsWasRight
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 4:28 PM, 08/29/2008
    this guy is 24 and he's talking like he's 42. this is the second time this year he's done this. isnt he the one that thought he was worth more than what he got in arbitration? because tim lincecum is about his age and is pitching as long as he can go on a terrible sf giants team, winning more games and striking out more, while making less money (yes, i understand arbitration). is hamels going to make it past 30? jeez.
    — mikeb
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 4:35 PM, 08/29/2008
    what i find funny is how they're saving themselves for later games (hamels, not putting in romero), but it's now august 29th and they're 1 game out of 1st and 4.5 out of the wild card. what's the point in saving the arms so much now? season's almost over. keep saving arms, keep losing games, and then you dont have to worry about who's pitching in october because it wont be anybody.
    — mikeb
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 6:41 PM, 08/29/2008
    Hollywood Hamels Strikes again...how old is he?? 24 and he can't go the distance???? What a Prima Donna.
    — BeatWritersSuck
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 6:49 PM, 08/29/2008
    Welcome to today's baseball. Pitchers are treated like dolls nowadays, in an era where a quality star was born and the 3 inning save is a dinosaur. Two much money involved. I’m sure Hamels had one inning left on him or maybe more, but maybe he got a call from his agent.
    — EL Zorro
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 8:14 PM, 08/29/2008
    Unless the powers-that-be are on a break, apparently self-edited and sound-alike swear words are off-limts. Fair enough, I'll try again. Gillick/Amaro/Montgomery/owners DO NOT CARE about going the extra mile to win as long as the fans fill the park. It will always be that way until new owners change the philosophy. Cole Hamels is a 'kitty kat' for not going out in the 8th.
    — PhilCali
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 9:44 PM, 08/29/2008
    Jimmy Rollins was right, he only got the terminology wrong. He should have called the fans "fairweather fans" because that's what they are. When you are going well, they cheer, but the minute you give up a few hits, or strike out with runners in scoring position, they boo you or want you traded. Cole Hamels is second in the league in innings pitched, he has already thrown more innings this year than all of last year and there are still 30 games to go. Both Ryan Madson & Chad Durbin have had good years, look at their ERA. Just because they had a couple of bad games, you "fairweather fans" are ready to run them out of town. Where is your loyalty?
    — foreclosure11
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 11:36 PM, 08/29/2008
    Maybe Hamels was recalling all the non-support and idotic decision making over the last two months and decided he would rather forgo the pleasure rising to the call one more time.
    — Wally 24
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 11:42 PM, 08/29/2008
    PhilCali - You'll find that some of those who monitor these posts are very selective in who they allow to post. God forbid you should speak ill of anyone connected with upper management or lower management for that matter.
    — Wally 24
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 12:52 AM, 08/30/2008
    Boo Hoo Hamels. Where is the "dig down deeper in the guts for the team" attitude? I'm sure Hamels wants to be considered the ace. The ace thinks he's the best pitcher on the team even at less than 100%, till the other team starts to pound the ball all over the park. Maybe Hamels goes out there and gets no one out...but he might have his best inning of the night. Where is the desire that drives a pitcher to say he's good to go even if his arm is falling off. Sorry Hollywood...Philly fans love digging a little deeper...The ace has to try!
    — dlauver1
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 3:43 AM, 08/30/2008
    Since when do the players dictate to the coaches when they play or not? So Manuel's saving Hamels for meaningless games in late September after the Phils are 6-7 games out? I've been a monster fan of Hamels, but this is really discouraging. of course he's going to say he supports the bullpen and has faith in them, blah blah blah. So then why was he so ticked that he bolted out of Wrigley last night without speaking to reporters? Philly fans get ripped, but they're smart and can tell when something's not right. They just want to win.
    — echosmyron
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 8:33 AM, 08/30/2008
    hamels does have a dicey history.
    — goawayfavre


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About David Murphy
David Murphy joined the Daily News as its Phillies beat writer in February of 2008. Born in Upper Merion and raised in the Poconos, he attended college at La Salle University before taking jobs with the Myrtle Beach (S.C.) Sun-News and the St. Petersburg ( Fla. ) Times. E-mail Dave at dmurphy@phillynews.com.

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