There have been some brutal pitching performances on display in LandShark Stadium this week. 2 days after Jorge Julio ruined the Brewer's night, Hayden Penn matched him and put the Marlins so far behind the 8 ball it was ridiculous. Yea, maybe it wasn't all Penn's fault, as West wasn't sharp (pitching only 4.1 innings) and the Marlins committed 2 errors in the inning, but Penn's job in long relief of the starter was to:
1. Throw strikes (he walked 4 of the 6 batters he faced and went to a 2-ball count on the sixth one before being lifted for Sanches)
2. Not allow the inherited runners to score (both did via walks, and he left with the bases loaded)
3. Limit the damage as much as he could if he did allow some runs (he walked the bottom of order...including the pitcher with the bases loaded)
4. Soak up some innings since the effective long relief man just went 5 innings the night before (he recorded 1 whole out)
Although Sanches came in and allowed all 3 of Penn's runners he inherited to cross the plate, thanks in part to Bonifacio's defense, this loss was not his fault. In fact, the loss should fall more on Penn's shoulders than West's. Penn entered the game with a 3-1 deficit, and when the smoke cleared it was 9-1 .
Yet despite trailing 9-1, the Marlins mustered a rally of their own, scoring 4 runs in the bottom of the fifth and loading the bases for Uggla when they were down 9-5. But then Seth McClung came to the rescue for the Brewers as he struck Uggla out to end the 5th inning, and that was that.
In the big picture though, I was glad to see Penn fail so miserably last night, as I figured it would spell the end of his tenure as a Marlin. I don't like to see anybody lose their job, but Hayden never really deserved the one he had this year to begin with. Not that I didn't see this coming, I just don't know how the front office couldn't as well.
So indeed, Penn was designated for assignment, and here comes that oh-crap-we-better-win-today-or-else-we-split-after-looking-so-good-the-first-two-games finale. (I hate 4 game series) It will be a rematch as JJ will go against Dave Bush. Those two pitched in the series finale in Milwaukee as well, with the Brewers earning a comeback win. JJ had a bit of a shoulder issue that day that he attributed to pitching in the thin air of Colorado the start before. It would be foolhardy to expect Johnson to either pitch only 4 innings or walk 5 again tomorrow. It should be a low-scoring affair and hopefully the Marlins can come out on the long end of it. Taking 3 of 4 from a first place team would be a good start to the homestand.
Original Story:
http://myteamrivals.typepad.com/marli...
