Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark17
I disagree. These are professionals who play 162 games times 9 (now 7 sometimes) innings. One inning is basically the same as another. And if there is extra urgency in the final inning, that could cut either way: Make a hitter more focused to succeed or more nervous to fail, make the pitcher more likely to excel or make him more likely to choke, and same with the fielders, baserunners, and so on.
The ninth inning is the most overrated concept in baseball. If I'm a manager with a top reliever and a mediocre one, I'll bring the best one in to stop a 7th inning rally where there are 2 on with just one out, and maybe use the mediocre one to start the ninth, rather than the other way around.
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Terry Francona was doing that a couple of years back with Andrew Miller as I recall. Even earlier in the game if he felt a hold then and there was key. Sort of blew up some sacrosanct notions of a closer.
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Last edited by Peter_Spaeth; 07-20-2021 at 04:08 PM.
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