Why did Charlie drop Cliff Lee's name?
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Why did Charlie drop Cliff Lee's name?
Matt Gelb, Inquirer Staff Writer
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. -- They scored. They stole bases. They won. Finally.
OK, there was one reason for Charlie Manuel not to celebrate after the Phillies' 3-2 victory over Florida on Friday night.
He was peeved at Kyle Kendrick -- not so much about the results, but the way his righthander pitched.
"Kendrick has to pick it up," Manuel said. "He has to get the flow of the game, the tempo and rhythm going. He picked it up a little bit there in the last two innings, but when he threw the ball, he was taking way too much time. He knows how many pitches he's got.
"Don't get me wrong: I want him to feel comfortable pitching. But at the same time, when he stands there and acts like he's afraid to throw the ball, a lot of things happen. Some mental stress sets in. You take the flow and energy out of the game."
Harsh words. And then, Manuel went there. He talked about He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.
"You know what one of Cliff Lee's biggest things is? He gets the ball, throws it and keeps you on your toes. The defense is always ready. He keeps the game on his flow, his tempo, his speed. [Jamie] Moyer can speed the game up and slow it down. But Kyle, he has to get rhythm and stuff going."
Manuel said he wasn't trying to send Kendrick a message; he told his pitcher the same things he told reporters.
Kendrick allowed two unearned runs in six innings against Florida. The two runs were of his doing, though, on a bad throwing error in the third inning. He easily fielded a comebacker off the bat of Hanley Ramirez with two runners on and two outs but threw wildly to first, allowing both runs to score.
But Kendrick, albeit at a slow and maddening pace, limited the Marlins. He allowed five hits and walked none.
And consider this: Ever since those disastrous first two starts against Washington that left Kendrick's ERA at 17.47, he has a 3.62 ERA in his last eight starts. In those games, the Phillies are 4-4. He's been very much what a team needs from its fifth starter.
He's done all of this with a painfully bad strikeout to walk ratio of 23 to 17. But that's always been a trademark of Kendrick: He doesn't miss very many bats. He pitches to contact and he will always need a degree of luck to be successful.
Manuel would like to see a more poised Kendrick.
"He's been keeping us in the game," Manuel said. "Don't get me wrong. But there's room for improvement. He can do it."
A total non-story.- agreed.— esesjay
Don't know why you read it, then. In fact, Charlie is right -- it's getting so you can grow a beard between pitches from Kendrick. He needs to find a more professional pace, for his own good.— 1980- One of first times I ever remember Manuel ripping one of his players in the press.. I think Manuel is 10x smarter than anyone gives him credit and this message was sent on purpose-- KK does need to pick it up-- he outthinks himself way too much.— youcantaketheguyoutofphilly...
Agree as well.— pedge- Why didn't Uncle Charlie say he wanted Cliff Lee? Those "prospects" that the Phillies got for him are duds.— StevenT
Kendrick could be a good pitcher, but he's a "head case". Charlie has given him every opportunity, and he still acts as though he's in a cloud. I would jump at any chance to bring back Cliff Lee. Losing him was a bad decision on Phillies management.— dogman5
Not a non-story at all...very insightful. I like to hear a manager's thoughts about a player's demeanor. It's good to hear Cholly push someone for a change.
Comment removed.- Who in the Phillies organization told reporters Cliff Lee must-not-be-named?— Gnip Gnop
- Cholly knows what Cliff Lee ment to this team, when he pitched the players were always in the game. The game had a great flow to it and he always kept them in the game. We miss you Cliff— btsucceed
- Cholly the great communicator. Does anybody know what he is talking about?— TripleCap
- Comment removed.
- Will you people get off the Cliff Lee diatribe. He's gone, and that's that. And, he will be in the AL after 31 July. The Mariners will keep him past that because their play has improved a bit. I've always been a Cholly detractor, but this year it seems to me that he does have a connection with this team. I don't know about Dubee being a bully. He's working with the pitchers given to him. The resurrection of Hamels is indicative of Dubee's work, but this pitch count nonsense has to stop. As for Dobbs, I would like Cholly to play strictly righty/lefty platooning for Polanco, Chooch, and Raul, and keep it going all season. A Gene Mauch strategy. Dobbs needs more at bats, and increased playing time will stop those between the legs errors. I also think there's something physically wrong with Utley. I don't care how gritty the guy is, if he's not 100%, he's hurting the team.— SPBilly
- I wouldn't be shocked if Cholly and Dubee told him this over and over again until it got to the point where he needed help from the media and fans. The same goes with Victorino and his approach at the plate. The coaches can offer advise and if the players don't try then everyone thinks its the coaching staff. Do you guys remember Burell & Schmidt, when Schmidt suggested to choke up w/2 strikes and Burell ignored Schmidt? Yeah, Burell was right what did Schmidt do anyway.— EarlKeese
