Seattle Mariners All-Star pitcher George Kirby is currently mired in a string of bad starts and that continued on Friday night in Tampa Bay.
Nursing a 4-2 lead in the bottom of the seventh inning, Kirby took the mound having already thrown 93 pitches. Nine pitches later, Rays catcher Rene Pinto smacked a two-run home run to left field, tying the game at four and starting a rally that saw Tampa Bay score five unanswered runs.
Kirby was promptly removed from the game.
After the 7-4 defeat, Kirby vented his frustration with manager Scott Servais and the decision to send him back out for the seventh inning.
“I wish I wasn’t out there for the seventh, to be honest,” Kirby said. “I was at [more than] 90 pitches. I didn’t think I needed to go anymore. But it is what it is.”
Kirby was then asked if there was a discussion in the dugout about the decision.
“There’ll be a conversation soon,” he said.
Servais refused to second-guess the decision, arguing that the bullpen was a bit thin and suggesting that Kirby had plenty left in the tank. The results, of course, would counter that notion.
“Basically, you’re at the bottom of the order, 7-8-9. He’d done a really good job handling those guys at that point,” Servais said, via the Seattle Times. “We were thin in the bullpen tonight, so you’re just trying to stretch (him) a bit.”
Whether it was a bad decision by Servais or just another rough outing for Kirby, the bottom line is that the Mariners took the loss and are now 3-5 on their 10-game, 10-day road trip.
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