I agree Berkman had a bad game, but Dotel just can not consistently throw strikes, and when runners get on base he throws straight gas, and that will get him burned a lot. I see Lidge as a lot like Smoltz, many good pitches to choose from and 2 devestating ones. Dotel is too fragile.....I wish Williams would treat his releavers as shabbily as he treats his starters. DD
I also tense up when Dotel comes on to the field to pitch. I just don't think he has the mentality needed to pitch as a closer. I would love to see Lidge try closing a game. Well, we were 11 games over .500 when I left Houston. And since we have sucked monkey balls. I am flying back to Houston tonight, so perhaps we will once again become a hot team. (crossing fingers).....
lidge does not have the control. dotel and lidge both lack the control of a smoltz. the astros lost a lot when they lost wagner and it was something that worried me before and it worries me a lot more now.
Wags brought a lot more than just 100mph and control when he came in to close a game. He brought an attitude with him that said 'you cant hit this'. He thrived on coming in and shutting the door regardless of the men on base or the guy at the plate. Dotel doesn;t have that in im....at least I havent seen it.
I think they should make Brad Lidge the closer. Dotel should be one of the setup men. If they can get another lefthander for the bullpen, perhaps Mike Gallo should be the other setup guy.
1. Nobody on this board knows what Dotel's "mentality" is when he pitches. Pure speculation. 2. Lidge & Dotel have performed about exactly the same this year. In situations where the 'Stros have been between 3 runs up & 3 runs down upon said pitcher entering the game (what I'd consider a "close" game): Dotel has pitched in 20 such games, Lidge 22 Dotel has held the lead, or kept the 'Stros w/in 3 runs in 15, Lidge 17 Dotel has "blown" 5 such situations, Lidge 5 as well. I also have no idea how well Dotel would handle such a demotion, given that he's pitched pretty well this season, and given that his replacement hasn't pitched that much better. Swapping closers will not fix what ails this team, nor will moving Bagwell from 3rd to 5th. It's a teamwide grip they're in right now. There's my .02 DaDa.
I disagree Buck..I don;t think you can fairly compare the two because they come in and pitch in entirely different situations. Also...we KNOW Dotel is the BEST setup man in the majors....he proved it last year...thus, moving him back to the role where we know he will succeed shouldn't be seen as a demotion. Will this fix everything? Who knows...but it can't hurt to try at this point. It can actually help in the long run because if we find out that Lidge (our 'closer of the future') can't handle closing, we can at least address it this offseason.
No they don't. I've checked. There is zero marked difference in the types of situations (entering w/ runners on, pitching in tight games) these guys get thrown into. Only difference is Dotel pitches after Lidge 90% of the time. If anything, Lidge has performed equally as well (or poorly, depending on your viewpoint) with LESS pressure than Dotel has had. Why do you think he'd do any better than Dotel as a closer?
Its a much bigger difference then you are giving it credit for. Bases loaded, 2 outs in the 8th and bases loaded 2 outs in the ninth is a big difference.
So what's your point? As I outlined above, Lidge & Dotel have pitched in a basically equal number of "tight" situations, and had equal success. If anything you'd have to give a little more consideration to Dotel, because he's pitching in the closer's role, with whatever amount of extra pressure that entails . So again, why do you think Lidge would be better as a closer than Dotel?
I never said he would be better...I said its worth a shot to see if Lidge can close. What I did say...and I'll stand by it, is that I know Dotel is the better set up man....hands down. They do not have an equal amt of "tight situations"...setting up and closing are two completely different animals.
DaDa, I have the same problem. I was a huge Oiler fan... watched them play as a kid with my Dad. Saw the 2 championships they won (AFL) and Blanda kick the first 50 yard field goal. I'm still sick about them leaving. Hope I can work up something for the Texans, eventually. On topic, Dotel needs a few good games with success to build up his confidence. If that doesn't happen, you have to think about a change. Lidge? Would be worth a try if Dotel doesn't improve. Otherwise, we need to make a move. Man, I was in Houston Monday and went to the game. Talk about frustrating! Clemens has a bad night and we can't score to save our lives. And after we moved down the last couple of innings, we seemed to be surrounded by Cubbies fans, who were having a field day.
Will this fix everything? Who knows...but it can't hurt to try at this point. It can actually help in the long run because if we find out that Lidge (our 'closer of the future') can't handle closing, we can at least address it this offseason. Except if Lidge can't handle the pressure, then you've got a big mess on your hands in that you've then got two headcases thinking they aren't good enough for the closer role on this team. Right now, you've got Lidge working the 8th really well - don't mess that up. You give Dotel some time to see if he can get back his dominance, in my opinion. 12 out of 15 saves is not out of the ordinary - we're just used to having ridiculously high success due to Wagner.
Major, I remember when they reluctantly gave Wagner the ball as a closer. It worked out. Lidge seems better suited to be a closer than Dotel, he has a much better Strikeout ratio, which is exactly what you need to get out of trouble. I would like to see him get a shot, Dotel is just not cutting it, he reminds me of Todd Jones ...LOTS of speed on the fastball, very little control. DD
We know Dotel can finish the 8th just as well as Lidge. He has been doing it for 2 years. My question is will Lidge be healthy. He didn't finish strong last year.
