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Projo SoxTalk with McAdam: Anyone but Gagne

Click here to listen to today's edition of projo SoxTalk with Sean McAdam. The topics: Terry Francona's decision to stick with Eric Gagne in the eighth; Gagne's state of mind; what are the set-up alternatives? Clay Buchholz as a possible eighth-inning man; Jon Lester's impressive start; and the mounting toll of injuries.

Here are some excerpts from Sean's comments.

Francona's decision: "I thought it was a mistake. I understand the long-term need to get Gagne back on track and [to have him] know that the Red Sox have confidence in him in that spot, and I think it's true they're a better team, obviously, with a dependable Eric gagne in the seventh or eighth inning than they are without. That's why they made the trade back on July 31. But to me, it's one thing to take that stance when you have, say, a five- or six-game lead with 11 or 12 to go, and it's quite something else to do it when the lead is shrinking and you run the risk of losing your rather tenuous hold on first place that youve had since April. I was perplexed. I understand what he was doing, I just don't think this is the time to be putting faith in players over results, because they haven't wrapped anything up yet."

Gagne's reaction: "To talk to him afterward -- his voice was, as I wrote [in today's Journal] barely above a whisper. He looked almost in a daze, couldn't believe this had happened, and he just seems a mess right now. I'm not sure there's much rationale for sending him out in those spots when he clearly is struggling with his own confidence."

On the team's health issues: "To me, that gets back to trying to wrap this up as quickly as possible, and the benefits [of doing so]. I'm certainly not suggesting that they're not trying to do that. But on one hand it seems as if Francona is more interested in getting his bullpen set up for the postseason, than in necessarily winning games. But if you win games and lock up the division, which is now going to take some time given what the math dictates, then that gives you the opportunity to not only set up your starting pitching -- which they couldn't do in 2005 and had to go with Matt Clement in Game One [of the ALDS] -- but it also gives some rest to guys who are scuffling, like Ortiz."

Posted by Mike McDermott  at 10:18 AM | Permalink

Comments

Bill Pearson | September 19, 2007 11:47 AM link