Last Updated on September 30, 2010 by Dave Farquhar
Bottom of the ninth inning. Two out. The lightning-fast Rafael Furcal on third base. The aged Julio Franco on first. Down by two runs. Two men left on the bench: Wes Helms, who’ll be pinch-hitting if pitcher John Smoltz comes up later in the inning, and Steve Torrealba, your .059(!)-hitting third-string catcher.
You’ve got to stay out of the double play because you want to get to Chipper Jones, who hits Robb Nen as well as anybody. You have no choice but to save Helms. And Julio Franco isn’t fast anymore, but he’s always faster than your third-string catcher.
What do you do?
You call down to the bullpen, where Greg Maddux is warming up, and have him run for Franco, that’s what you do.
Insanity? Probably. But here’s how I see it.
Maddux can still run the bases. He can almost certainly run the bases better than Franco. You have to get Chipper Jones to the plate at any cost. If Jones hits a homer, the game’s through, so the rest is a non-issue. If Jones doesn’t hit a homer and Wes Helms has to hit for Smoltz and the Braves end up only tying the game, no problem. Helms is a first baseman. Helms stays in to play first. Maddux stays in the game to pitch. The result is just an unconventional double switch.
And Maddux is exactly who you want pitching in extra innings in a do-or-die game. Normally a starter, Maddux can give you innings. And Maddux could potentially contribute with his bat.
But it’s all a non-issue now. The Giants closed down the Braves with Jones in the on-deck circle. The Giants are coming to St. Louis.
So it’s Angels-Twins in the AL, Giants-Cardinals in the NL. The usual suspects of October are going to be watching from their living rooms.
It’s a very different October.
David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He started his career as a part-time computer technician in 1994, worked his way up to system administrator by 1997, and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He invests in real estate on the side and his hobbies include O gauge trains, baseball cards, and retro computers and video games. A University of Missouri graduate, he holds CISSP and Security+ certifications. He lives in St. Louis with his family.
Um, Dave were we watching the same game? Granted, I only saw the bottom of the ninth, but here’s how I recall it going down: when I flipped over to the game, it was first and third, no outs, Sheffield at the plate. Nen strikes out Sheffield. Chipper Jones grounds out to the first baseman, who then tosses to the shortstop to catch the runner in a rundown to complete the double play. Inning, game, series. Did I miss something?
Details, to be sure, but the important point is that the Braves lose again in the postseason. Sweet. While I respect the Braves’ pitching staff, I think they’ve taken advantage of a weak division for years. I don’t have a special place in my heart for them as I do the Spankees, because they’re, well, *special*. But I’m enjoying this post-season. In addition to the Cardinals looking charmed, the Braves, Yanks, and Diamondbacks are gone. There are elements on each of those teams that are overrated (Brenly – some really numbskull coaching), arrogant (Shilling, Sheffield), or both. I don’t begrudge the class acts though: Mark Grace and… well, OK, Mark Grace.