Arizona Diamondbacks @ Chicago Cubs July 23 - July 26

[Brian]

The pitcher determines the pitch. The catcher just makes the calls so they are both on the same page.

Sometimes. There is a lot more to it than that.

Boxberger threw his second best pitch to a hitter that he had 0-2. If you are going to throw that pitch, in that count, with the tying run on base it had better be in a location that is either Ball 1, fouled off, or hit weakly.

It appeared to me from the sequence that he threw to Zobrist that he was having trouble locating his changeup. I'd bet on it, but I also don't know where the location was asked for.

That 0-2 count was the perfect time to try and throw another change. Then again, that late in the game the pitches are often called from the dugout.

FWIW - Relievers often defer to veteran catchers. Especially when they have called the entire game.

 

[BillsCarnage]

So much for that farcicle

 

[devilalum]

This is always the worst.

You watch your team scratch and claw for 3 hours and some joker comes in and blows it in the last 5 minutes.

What if right after Harry Potter killed Valdemort a piece of the roof fell on his head and killed him?


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[BC867]

It would make sense for Archie to be the closer. But they would rather have him available to A) pitch more than one inning if necessary and B) pitch to the toughest part of the batting order late in the game, but I have seen that occur only in the 7-8 innings, not the 9th.

Despite what some people say, I believe that the closer is the most important reliever because there is no safety net.

That being the case, I think it would be time to name Archie the closer . . . once he develops a reliable 2nd pitch beside his fast ball.