Riggleman: I would have pitched Kerry less

[Banedon]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/21/AR2010022103271.html

 

In 1998, his rookie season, Chicago Cubs phenom Kerry Wood started 26 games, throwing 2,840 pitches and striking out 233 batters. Nine times he threw more than 120 pitches in a game. For perspective, the Washington Nationals had one game last season in which their starter threw more than 120 pitches.

 

Jim Riggleman, now the manager in Washington, happened to manage the Cubs in 1998. On Sunday, he compared his latest phenom, Stephen Strasburg, to Wood, acknowledging that "there are a lot of similarities. Very similar talents."

 

But Riggleman also admitted regret about his handling of Wood, who started his rookie season as a 20-year-old. True, the Cubs were in a pennant race, and regard league-wide for pitch limits didn't match the current adherence. But Riggleman offered no excuses.

 

"I think if anything that I learned from it, having to do it over I probably would have pitched Kerry less," Riggleman said. "At the time that we had Kerry, my recollection of any criticism I had was 'Why did you take him out of the game?' After the fact it's 'Well, you pitched him too much.' "

 

Good luck to Riggs in Washington. I always really liked that guy.

[treebird]

: (

[daske17]

Upon hearing this news Dusty Baker called Riggleman a pansy and reiterated his desire to have Chapman pitch 300 innings with a minimum 120 pitch count.

[Sammy Sofa]

If wishes and buts were candy and nuts then Jim Riggleman would be a gigantic fatass.

[Northside Blues]

I do not blame him for it. Kerry Wood would have needed TJ eventually anyways. It may not have been until he was 24 but it was inevitable.

[jersey cubs fan]

I do not blame him for it. Kerry Wood would have needed TJ eventually anyways. It may not have been until he was 24 but it was inevitable.

 

So might as well get it over with early is what you're saying?

[Hairyducked Idiot]

I definitely partially blame him for it. Wood was likely damaged by his high school coaches, but he broke 120 pitches eight times as a 20/21 year old in 1998. It wasn't quite Mark Prior stretch run of 2003 levels of awful, but it was awful.

[wekim81]

Wasn't Kerry drafted with a bit of a known elbow injury?

[A New Era]

So Riggleman says the samething we've all been saying for the past 4 some od years and he gets credit for what? Welcome to 5 years ago dumbass.

[Garwilly]

So Riggleman says the samething we've all been saying for the past 4 some od years and he gets credit for what? Welcome to 5 years ago [expletive].

 

Chill out

[A New Era]

So Riggleman says the samething we've all been saying for the past 4 some od years and he gets credit for what? Welcome to 5 years ago [expletive].

 

Chill out

 

 

Sorry can't do that. Stopping smoking and SSRI's at the same time. Makes it easier to see and comment on the SO WHAT moments.

[Banedon]

Andy MacPhail, the Cubs' president at the time, said he was surprised to hear Riggleman express regret over 1998.

 

"I don't really have an issue with the way Jim used Kerry," MacPhail, now the Baltimore Orioles' general manager, told the Post. "I don't really remember any discussion of, 'Gee, this guy was overworked.' . . . You didn't hear much of that back then. What has changed over time is the scrutiny and the documentation" of pitch counts.

[jersey cubs fan]

Andy MacPhail, the Cubs' president at the time, said he was surprised to hear Riggleman express regret over 1998.

 

"I don't really have an issue with the way Jim used Kerry," MacPhail, now the Baltimore Orioles' general manager, told the Post. "I don't really remember any discussion of, 'Gee, this guy was overworked.' . . . You didn't hear much of that back then. What has changed over time is the scrutiny and the documentation" of pitch counts.

 

Funny words from a guy whose entire philosophy for winning relied on developing pitchers, and then put the entire weight of the franchise on a couple young arms.

[Soul]

Andy MacPhail, the Cubs' president at the time, said he was surprised to hear Riggleman express regret over 1998.

 

"I don't really have an issue with the way Jim used Kerry," MacPhail, now the Baltimore Orioles' general manager, told the Post. "I don't really remember any discussion of, 'Gee, this guy was overworked.' . . . You didn't hear much of that back then. What has changed over time is the scrutiny and the documentation" of pitch counts.

 

Funny words from a guy whose entire philosophy for winning relied on developing pitchers, and then put the entire weight of the franchise on a couple young arms.

 

I'm not sure how Andy got 2 WS championships out of Minny, but since then his philosophy either sucks, or he sucks at implementing it.