Why what you have done lately matters
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Why what you have done lately matters
David Murphy, Daily News Staff Writer
When you consider the emotions of defeat and the persecutory feeling of a tight circle of microphone-wielding reporters, a certain amount of leeway should be afforded to an athlete when he answers a question about his performance. Once you have afforded Kyle Kendrick this leeway, you may proceed to the nearest section of drywall and bang your head against it in a steady yet forceful manner. More than two hours after he trudged off the mound in the fourth inning with a 6-1 deficit on the scoreboard, and long past the time most of his teammates had departed from the post-game clubhouse, the right-hander emerged from a members-only section of the premises and fielding questions about the Phillies' 12-6 loss. He was asked about a second inning in which he threw 50 pitches, walking a light-hitting eight-hole hitter and then surrendering a two-run double to the opposing pitcher.
"I just couldn't find the zone," he said.
He was asked about his tempo, which slowed to the pace of a rush hour crawl, about a perceived lack of aggression, which pushed his manager close to combustion.
"When you are struggling to find the zone, that's how it is," he said.
And then he was asked about his security in the rotation, where he is 2-8 with a 5.01 ERA in 15 starts this season, and the potential that he might head to the bullpen, where he is 2-1 with a 3.95 ERA in 12 appearances.
Kendrick shrugged.
"I guess that's how it is with me,'" he said. "It's, 'What have you done for me lately?'"
Whether Kendrick uttered the words in response to the media's constant hunt for a referendum or in response to his coaches' personnel decisions though out the season, the only response he will get is the sound of a record scratching to a halt. That, or a bug-eyed Jack Nicholson slamming his fist on a wooden table and barking in a homicidal rage, "You're (gosh) (darn) right it's what have you done for me lately."
You can forgive his exact words. Again, leeway. But words come from thoughts, and thoughts come from observations, and when you consider the observations required to get from A to B to "Woe is me," you realize that you are traveling a cognitive chain that is in serious need of reconditioning.
What Kendrick needs to understand is that the ability to throw a hard object with relative precision does not have any inherent value to a non-hunter-and-gatherer society. Kendrick does not manufacture a good, nor does he perform a service that is integral to the functioning of the American economy. A fastball does not refrigerate food or cure disease. A pitcher does not earn $3 million because he has a $3 million arm. He cannot call a 1-800 number during a commercial break on the O'Reilly Factor and exchange his sinker for gold bars. Investors are not transferring their money from treasuries to change-ups.
A human being's status as a pitcher does not entitle him to anything. He must create that value himself. He must earn everything. The value of a pitcher's skill is dictated entirely by the open market, and the open market is dictated by the decisions people make about where they spend their money. Kendrick makes $3 million because a lot of people have chosen to invest a percentage of their wealth in the ability to watch a baseball game rather than investing it elsewhere. Last night, one of those investors, a gentleman seated within earshot of the press box at Citizens Bank Park, yelled at the top of his lungs, "Give us our money back!" That, of course, is not the way markets work. But the gentleman's experience at the ballpark on Wednesday night can affect his future spending decisions. And since the game he watched was a pair of handcuffs away from violating the Geneva Conventions, it probably will.
If enough people have enough bad experiences and make enough changes to their spending habits, the Phillies lose money, which affects the earning potential of everybody in the organization, from the front office to the coaching staff to the players to the clubhouse staff. Which is why Charlie Manuel seemed so agitated after watching the second inning unfold on Wednesday night. The manager was so perturbed that he decided that his best course of action was to avoid saying words at his post game press conference. He didn't even bother with his nightly recitation of the pitching line. Manuel is a man who will excuse physical failure, because baseball is a game in which it is expected. What he cannot stomach, though, is a failure to control the controllable. And that, we can only assume, is what he saw in the second inning.
Me? I think the night was lost with one out, when a breaking ball in the dirt got past Erik Kratz and allowed runners to move to second and third. For a brief moment, Kendrick held a crouch, looking in at home, the wrong kind of emotion on his face. It was the kind of body language that Manuel and pitching coach Rich Dubee detest, the kind that is the arch nemesis of consistency. The consistent ones are consistent because they accept the results that are beyond their control. A failure to do so puts the whole operation in peril. That wild pitch -- a more agile catcher could have blocked it -- enabled a run to score on the ensuing groundout. And from there, the night spiraled out of control. A walk to Paul Janish. A double to Tim Hudson. A walk to Michael Bourn. And then a two-run single by Martin Prado.
One run followed by a quick third out would have sufficed. Instead, one run turned into four. What have you done for me lately? It is the essence of the sport.
I remember another former Phillies pitcher that wanted to be a starter but really blossomed when he finally devoted himself to being a reliever. That was Ryan Madson and Kyle Kendrick can be just as effective if he just gets behind being a reliever.— tony bell- U gotta wonder what the heck the coaching staff is doing with some of these under-performing pitchers (Kendrick, Bastardo, among others). They show good basic skills from time to time, so why not coach them up. It's doubtful that all-stars like Lee, Doc and Cole need much coaching, which leaves lots of time to work with the rest of the staff and develop or redisover their basic basic skills.— Ringsider
- Kendrick needs to resume his role in the bullpen. He is effective there. Some guys are starters and others not. I think the Phils need to bring up some yutes to see if they are prime time ready.— rockinrob
- Kyle Kendrick got the start due to the trade of Joe Blanton. What is factual is that Kendrick is more productive out of the bullpen. Done...Finished. Time to move on folks. It has been said over and over, but come on management, time to bring up the youngin's to see what they have. Put some of these guys on the 15 day DL starting 8/16/12 (then no need to wait for the 9/1/12 call up date). The time is NOW to see what we have and what we don't have.— drhoffman
- Good article. Baseball is a GAME. Grown men are getting paid fantastic salaries to play a GAME. If they do not perform consistent basis, they should find another occupation. This includes management as well. The Phillies at this point in time have a number of players who should be employed elsewhere.— JimB
- if the Phillie/Amaro/Manuel defenders don't get it by now, they never will.
Guys like Kendrick ALWAYS get the benefit of the doubt here. They almost NEVER get sent down or sent away to clear room for another player to get his chance.
Witness how long it took to recognize this in Baez and consider the stranglehold on a roster spot afforded to the likes of Martinez and Herndon and Contreras and Schneider, and now Kendrick.
Asche, Overbeck, Cloyd, Kratz (until Schneider got a serious injury), whomever are never seen as possible pieces. Tried and true and declining veterans is ALWAYS the way to go for this management.
Well, folks, the virtue of that strategy has failed so miserably, the Phils are in record-setting territory. Go look up how many teams ever went backwards by 30 or more wins from one season to the next (102 last year to 72 this year possibly)— advantasux - for all the bashing me and others have written about the media's turn-the-other-cheek handling of Amaro and Manuel, a column like the one offered above by Murph makes me wonder if some of these writers aren't secretly dying to come out and question the whole miserable thing Amaro has set up here. These guys must question to themselves the inaction taken on players such as Kendrick with Cloyd doing so well down at AAA, and the preservation of the seeming roster-spot-for-life for guys like Martinez, and the re-signing of guys like Contreras and Schneider last offseason when their decline was obvious to all including those two players.
None of these writers is stupid. I guess remaining in line to feed at the company trough is enough of a reason to continue to curry favor with the men whom have failed so completely, but I have to believe that almost every one of these guys is dying to let it rip.
Or so I'd like to think.— advantasux - I read this piece. It's entirely incoherent. I have no idea what any of this means or what the writer intends. I'm guessing Ernest Hemingway is coughing up blood in his grave after reading this. Given that, it will probably get some kind of sports writing award.— distant.star
- I never understood why they gave him a big contract. He's not major league material. Never has been. Adam Eaton type.— 4thand10
- I am a Phils fan for over 60 years.Earlier this year,my son-in-law,
my two grandaughters.and I drove 100 miles to see Phils and Dodgers.
Kendrick was starter.I did not want to go,but,it was Lucy and Mary's
first game.I will NEVER go to a game that that KK is starting unless
he is with opposition.
— MaxDom - higher sandberg..clap clap... clap clap clap..higher sandberg.. clap clap...clap clap clap..higher sandberg..clap clap ...clap clap clap!
fire num nuts..clap clap...clap clap clap! etc etc.— Ryne Duren - advantasux: you continue to rant and rave over guys who are the 22-25 spots on a roster. Earlier in the season, many posters, probably including yourself, wanted Diekman, doing well in Triple A, called up as the bullpen savior, a better lefthander than Bastardo. How has that worked out? The distance from triple A to the Majors is still a long one; Tyler Cloyd is now the flavor of the month, but there is no indication that teams are breaking down the doors of Amaro's office to get Cloyd or that scouts are salivating over him. Yes, veterans get a longer leash, but that is the case with all teams, particularly when the veterans are getting paid big bucks, and given the arbitration eligible clock. Cloyd will get his chance, just as Schwimer, Diekman, Bastardo, Stutes, Rosenberg, Valdes ad nauseum, and hopefully will surprise everyone. As I have said elsewhere: Amaro took a gamble that the team that won 97 games two seasons ago and lost in the NLCS and 102 games last season, losing (thanks to a lame Cliff Lee effort) in the NLDS (to a Cardinals team that only got into the playoffs because the Braves did an el choker in that last three-game series with the Phils)had another season or two left in the tank, particularly with Halladay, Lee, Hamels, Worley, and Blanton and adding one of the best closers in the game in Papelbon. Did he make mistakes. Yes, but nobody predicted Halladay going down, Lee going down for a month with an oblique, Worley getting bone chips, Utley forgetting to tell anyone that he was still lame, and Mayberry stinking out the joint. You can continue to scream, but Amaro will get another season or two to get this team back into the playoffs. I agree that the time is right for Manuel to be put out to pasture, as new voices are needed in the dugout, BUT teams have not been anxious to hire Sandberg, including the Cubs, which raises questions as to why he is still in Triple A.— chuckw
- All very reasonable, as is your style, my friend. I would only add, regarding Ruin Tomorrow Jr.: $170 million payroll, last place team. If a marginal talent like Kendrick is to be held accountable, then the management failure of 'Ruin' must - absolutely must - have some accountability as well.
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- What has he done lately? What has he ever done for this team except about one good outing every twelve appearances? Besides having no ability the guy is mentally weak. Get rid of him.— Edward L Norton
- @chuckw, I believe I've been ranting and raving over guys occupying spots well below #22 - #25, as I really can count only 16 major-league caliber players in the entire system. Rushing guys like Rosenberg and Savery and Sanches and Diekman (I had never heard of him prior to his arrival here) into the mix doesn't support your argument in defense of Amaro's strategy as much as it supports mine.
In his desire to sign so many high-priced players and leave himself with precious little in resources to fill out the roster, he has also made some incredibly stupid decisions with guys named Contreras, Schneider, Martinez, Herndon and Baez (last year). Did he not notice the complete absence of any youth on his team, or the unbalanced average age of his roster and the propensity of mid-30's players to go down with injuries more than the norm?
I just read what you wrote three times through and I'm simply left with the unmistakable impression that other than "replacing Manuel with a new voice in the clubhouse" (even as you question Sandberg's credentials), you are perfectly satisfied with giving these folks a mulligan and staying the course.
To that I will offer that even now, with their roster almost completely intact and with the pressure of a pennant race off, they still cannot string together 3 or more wins.
You need to smell the coffee, my friend. Amaro has gutted this organization and if he's allowed to be the one to undo his wrongs, he better start by figuring a way to inject some youth, and bring up a manager (Sandberg) who knows that youth first-hand.
— advantasux
