STL Cardinal Rants

I’m going to do something I didn’t think I’d be doing a couple months ago.  I’m going to defend Kyle Lohse.

I don’t think it’s exactly his fault he gave up 7 earned runs in 3 innings.  I blame TLR & DD.  Why?

This is Lohse’s first start off the D.L.  While I don’t think he’s really that great of a pitcher, I do think you give a guy a break on the first start back from the D.L.  And part of that break is not letting a guy who is just off the D.L give up SIX runs in one inning.

I know that TLR & DD subscribe to the thought that you let the pitcher leave on some kind of high note.  An out or something, but it’s a terrible theory when the pitcher CAN’T get a guy out and just came back from injury.  You let him give up 3, maybe 4 at the most, then you have to get him out of there. 

And guess what?  Turns out IF TLR had only allowed Lohse to give up 3 or 4, the Cardinals probably would have won.

Do I think Lohse is destined to be a great pitcher?  No.  He’s got something more wrong than his injury.  BUT, he shouldn’t have been kept in that long and that is the real issue with yesterday’s game.