MLB 2022: The Long and Winding Thread

I'm telling you what people well embedded with the Guardians told me. There was no reason for him not to pitch. None. And Francono's not going to baby a guy in Game 5 of a five-game series. Remember how he used to baby Papelbon, but had no problem using him for two innings in a playoff game? Same deal. If his arm's going to fall of during a deciding game of a postseason series, so be it.

This is why I believe Bieber will be traded now. He's 27, in the prime of his career but still two years away from his big contract, unless he gets traded now. Both he and the team stand to benefit most from him being dealt now and him and his agent bitching out of a winner-take-all game is only greasing the skids.

 

So a local beat guy who has never broken a story reports the company line. And?

 

That’s not tanking.

 

I didn't say there was a logical reason. I said there was a reason. If the reporter you keep citing did 5 minutes of research, he'd find plenty of evidence of Francona going against his own grain to try to win in October, including earlier in the series when Clase pitched a third inning. So why not now?

Does the agent manage the team? No. Does the agent have more power than you're willing to recognize? Probably. Dennis Wyrick is Boras lite. You can bet he's calling shots for Bieber and the team is powerless to say anything about it.

By the way, Bieber saying after the game "Could I? Sure" isn't exactly the same as "I wanted the ball."

 

That's also not a logical reason.

 

Wonder what the outrage would be if Bieber pitched on 3 days rest and gave up 3 earned in point-1 innings of Game 5.

 

And then there was Schwarber hitting a 488-foot homer and the Phillies throwing a one-hitter in Game 1.

 

Actually, I did explain it to you. I didn't give you a thousand words on the subject, so perhaps it was a little out of your wheelhouse. Their desire to trade him is driven by money. This desire to trade him is why they wouldn't risk pitching him on short rest. Their refusal to spend means they can't afford to have assets getting hurt.