Brad Penny loves his Ws. Though the Dodgers got the win, Penny had a meltdown on the mound because Grady Little pulled him in the fifth inning before he qualified for the win. Even though he had given up 6 straight runs, 4 of them in the 5th inning, Penny decided to show up his manager and the water cooler by hitting it with a bat. The cooler, not the manager.
Grady Little said that pulling Penny early was key to the Dodgers’ win but Penny disagreed.
I wanted a chance to get that inning out of the way. I’m out there pitching hurt. … I don’t appreciate not getting the chance with a three-run lead to finish the inning.
Little defended his decision by saying, “I didn’t want to pull a ‘Grady Little’.” Oh, if only that last sentence were true.
Links:
[Tennessean.com]: Little’s hook angers Penny
One reply on “Grady Little gets criticized for pulling a pitcher too early?”
I was at the game — The decision to pull Penny was perfectly justified. He was simply getting ripped at the time and it looked as if he couldn’t get another out. There’s no sense anyway in keeping your top starter in when you have a big lead, especially if he’s about to completely ruin his ERA.
And what Penny did in the dugout was embarassing. It went beyond the segment they showed on ESPN; Penny went around the dugout for about five minutes shouting and throwing things. He threw his water bottle and glove in addition to the bat; and then disappeared into the clubhouse.