nice work, jerry manuel

[G-Man]

this guy really has no clue. it's one thing to put your closer (or the closest thing to a closer you have) in the game to get some work, but it is quite another thing to put him in in the 8th when you are losing and let him face 7-8 hitters in the ninth while racking up a pitch count of over 40. this guy is such an idiot. maybe he is trying to shatter flash's confidence, or maybe he just feels he doesn't need his closer to be available for the next 2-3 days so he might as well leave him out there as the game gets more out of reach and his pitch count continues to rise. i suppose all gordon owners should be happy manuel IS still the manager though, b/c his days as a closer will probably be done if someone new comes in.

[Quaker]

Manuel got ejected before Gordon went in, so it probably wasn't his call, unless he pulled a Valentine and snuck back in.

[Leiter Fan]

Manuel got ejected before Gordon went in, so it probably wasn't his call, unless he pulled a Valentine and snuck back in.

Please, being thrown out of the game doesn't affect the manager's ability to call the shots, except in play-by-play situations. The bench coach will usually get instructions from the clubhouse every half inning.

And for the record, Valentine didn't give any instructions when he nuck back in - he just lightened the mood with his laughable disguise (which I personally thought was hilarious).

[icalderus]

valentine was absolutely hillarious with that antic. those glasses , hat and mustache were insane. how about him impersonating taking bong loads in that press conference? this guy is too much . lol.

[thehat]

I have no problem with criticism of Manuel, but he was absolutely correct in this situation. Gordon had a ridiculously easy 8th inning and this was still a one run game...and a very important one at that. Gordon's ninth inning adventure was misleading. He gave up a bad bounce double, made a bad decision on a bunt that led to an error when Joe Crede fanned on the throw. He'd have likely escaped with one run allowed had it not been for a terrible ball/strike call following that. In any event, Manuel let Gordon finish up correctly. Why waste another arm, especially since there was basically no one other than Marte left in the pen.

The move worked out tonight as a fresh Marte was able to work in the 8th and 9th and got the save. Gordon will be available for a hitter or two if needed Wednesday and the White Sox are off Thursday.