The Wrong Panic Move
Well the lineup is in and Molina is catching AJ but we also have a change in right. Swisher is on the bench and...HARISTON is in?
I looked it up and the reason has to be that Hairston has hit .333/.407/.500 against Pedro in his career. Of course that is off of a whopping 24 AB's.
And to make matters worse, Hairston is batting 7th, in front of Melky.
If you bench Swisher, you have to go to Hinske in my mind. You also don't go to Hairston with Molina already in the lineup. This is panic, plain and simple and the wrong kind.
Tonight's game is fascinating. I expect the Yankees to pound Pedro and I would not be shocked if the Phillies returned the favor to AJ. Then again, Pedro could author a gem. Made me think of that great Vin Scully quote in "For the Love of the Game"
And you know Steve you get the feeling that Billy Chapel isn't pitching against left handers, he isn't pitching against pinch hitters, he isn't pitching against the Yankees. He's pitching against time. He's pitching against the future, against age, and even when you think about his career, against ending. And tonight I think he might be able to use that aching old arm one more time to push the sun back up in the sky and give us one more day of summer.
See yolu after the game.
