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Any lefty relievers in the Mariners’ camp can take this as a help-wanted posting: manager Lloyd McClendon would like to have three of you on his 25-player roster.
“I can’t say I’m going to have three,” McClendon cautioned. “In a perfect world, I’d like to have three. And we’ve got some viable candidates. Guys who have good arms.”
McClendon previously indicated Charlie Furbush as a virtual lock for a spot after compiling a 3.74 ERA last season in 71 games.
Other lefty candidates include Lucas Luetge, Joe Beimel, Randy Wolf and Bobby LaFromboise.
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Point A: the obsession with LH-on-LH is, in SSI's view, neurotic.
We can argue that another time. My view (and that of Bill James) is that major league teams may very well need ZERO left hand relievers. If you want one, fine. But you can imagine my reaction to "I need THREE."
For those who just joined us: get a good pitcher in there, and let him throw a little bit. Don't half-bake it by shuffling lousy pitchers in and out every hitter. It's an inferiority complex before you open the first series.
You think when Texas rolled Robbie Ross, Neal Cotts, and Joe Nathan out there to slam the game shut, they gave a rat's tail whether you had Kyle Seager and Kendrys Morales? Texas liked their pitchers. They came at you with them. They didn't hide behind an abstract platoon concept.
Point B: If you had three good ones, that would be one thing. The Mariners have Charlie Furbush and ...
... what?
Point C: Randy Wolf gives up a lifetime SLG of .432 vs righties, compared to .401 vs lefties. He's an 88 MPH slurveballer who is the opposite of a lefty specialist. And it sounds like he goes into camp with a job to lose.
Point D: In case you were getting the idea that Dr. Detecto works too hard at cherrypicking the issues that are fun to read about ... be reminded that when he thinks the Mariners are shooting themselves in the foot, he's only too glad to scream bloody murder.
Point E: From the left side you got Furbush and a big heaping pile; from the right side you got
And instead of them, you're going to give a job to Randy Wolf?
.....
It's my team, Furbush is the only LH reliever on this squad going into camp. But if you had wanted 2-3 lefties you shoulda blinkin' well kept Oliver Perez.
Don't duck responsibility. ID the right hand pitchers who are GOING to be GOOD. Then bring them forward.
Bah Humbug,
Dr D
It could be that the M's don't view the RH options optimistically. I agree that beyond Furbush, the M's have no one.
But the only angle that makes sense, rational or irrational, is that the M's scouting or projection doesn't LOVE their RH options.
Something else to keep in mind is the context in which McLendon gave his statement and what he really meant by it, as opposed to what came out in print. It could have very well been an attempt-at-not-being-as-PR-friendly-as-possible statement to a direct question along the lines of "Could the team break camp with 3 LH relievers?" If that or something similar were the query to him, his statement doesn't seem as LOOGY-obsessed.
Not to absolutely say that must be the case, but from what I can see in all of that 1 short quote, it's not much of a reach to think it might have been taken out of context.
Brian Moran demolishes lefties. In 76 IP against 'em since 2011, he's got a 13K/3.3 BB thing going on, without getting hit hard (FIP is 1.99, SIERA is 2.29 against LHBs). He gives up some singles (about 9 per) but if you want 3 pen lefties shouldn't you keep the ones you already have? Especially the ones that are ready to try the bigs?
Management already went the other way on the bundle-of-lefties thing. Probably a little to late to make those kinds of wish lists.
~G