Why Wasn't Bobby Parnell Already Closing?

reading the subject and the first couple of paragraphs, that you were going down the road of having Izzy close out games up to this point was a waste of time or flat out wrong.

Glad I kept reading. And I’m in agreement.
Given the lost season, the eye to the future, having the luxury of easing Parnell into this role this year and the benefits of watching and listening to Izzy can only be a plus.

Only time will tell if Parnell is gonna cut it as the next closer on this team. I haven’t given up on the idea yet but it’s getting late.

Parnell to become the next closer because Izzy is not a long term solution. I want him to figure out his pitchers, I dont want him to be another head case like Pelfrey despite the fact I want Pelfrey to figure it out. Izzy’s story and accomplishment is (in my mind) a nice light on an otherwise dim season. Having the most closers in the 300th club out of all the MLB clubs is a pretty good feeling too.

I have no qualms with the team farting a few games here and there to get an old vet and feel-good story like Izzy a nice little milestone to look back fondly on.

And he thought Terry using Izzy as a closer just so he could get to 300 saves and then immediately giving Parnell the closer role after he reached said mark was a fireable offense. His point was that managing a team to an individual statistic, especially one as dubious as 300 saves, was absurd and ran contrary to the real goals of an organization. Karabell’s point was that Parnell should’ve been closing from the time K-Rod was traded. He found it equally outrageous.

I like Izzy and all, but in principle I can’t say I disagree with either of them.

It’s one of those unwritten baseball rules that if you have a veteran player on their last legs nearing a career milestone then you play him and let him reach the milestone before you give the younger, more talented player a chance to prove he can handle the job…?

Normally, the “veteran presence” argument can be discounted at times, as the costs could outweigh the benefits, but in this case, I think the natural progression and easing in, as well as the intuitive learning process, will give Parnell a solid foundation on which he can comfortably transition from setup man to closer. Sometimes, being named the closer can overwhelm a pitcher. If I recall correctly, Ryan Franklin of the St. Louis Cardinals faced that same situation, and did fine after a somewhat rough start at that role. Sabermetrically speaking, this argument holds up, still. His monthly xFIPs improved slowly, and he became a very effective closer for a time.

As great as advanced statistics are (and I deem them credible), the mentality and psychology aspect of the role can not be quantified by numbers. It could be correlated in some situations (with some help from anecdotal evidence), but there’s no solid evidence of a closely direct correlation. Sometimes, the nature of higher-leverage situations get the better of some pitchers. Sometimes, they don’t. My point: Since Parnell is being exposed to higher-leverage situations (perhaps wittingly, with K-Rod’s departure), he is being primed for the role in the future, with some backing from experience and example.

But would I support Parnell being tried as a closer now? Absolutely.

The Closer: My perspective

for whatever reason, when I watch Parnell pitch, he looks eminently hittable. I’ve not really seen the killer slider.

His Elias rating will be artificially inflated because of “savez”, and he’s currently floating just below type B status. A few good weeks to close the season and Izzy the closer could be netting us a supplemental pick. While Izzy as the closer is artificially increasing his value on the market, it’s probably forcing Parnell’s to do the opposite. The more games Parnell closes before reaching arbitration, the more he’s going to cost. I don’t see any reason that we should be making his arbitration number go up at this point.

That has zero effect on where we finish this year. Solid LEADERSHIP by a manager, keeping his players engaged.

“Let’s go out there get Izzy that 300th today boys”

I would have thought everyone here of all places would know it doesn’t really matter if a guy is pitching the 8th or 9th, that they still have to get outs, and if anything, many times the 8th will present a more difficult situation than the 9th. If it’s just to drive up his perceived value, then I can understand that. Otherwise, if he’s good in the 8th, I see no reason why he can’t be good in the 9th, too. They obviously weren’t taking it seriously to begin with if Isringhausen was only pitching the 9th so his save stat could look pretty, so I really don’t see it as a big deal.

I’ll be back later, but if you’re looking for a good laugh (or two), check this out

Just remember, that not every factor that goes into determining ballgames can be quantified. And really, philosophically speaking, isn’t this THE very reason why we play the games in the first place? Statistics are good the same way history lessons are, but there are no methods in place that can determine what will happen. We can only expect, speculate, scout, and extrapolate. We can increase the likelihood of achieving a desired result, but only by so much. Just remember, that in the discourse of closer role discussion, the very reason why nothing is set in stone, with respect to existing substantial empirical evidence, is because of the various physical and physiological factors in play. And lastly, as is inevitable, punctuated events can quickly change the scope of not just one single situation, but significantly, successive situations in the future. The burden of proof lies in whatever fate has in store. In closing: there is no such thing as a sure thing. We can only play the percentages, given a menagerie of attributes, while also paying attention to the minor, seemingly insignificant subtleties of the game, that make it beautiful.

I think we should realize and accept that we don’t have a legit “closer” for the time being. I don’t find any of our current relievers to be “dominant” or that they have the ability to consistently miss bats. Parnell can throw a 100 mph but its the easiest 100 mph fastball to hit I’ve ever seen. Collins should just play out the season according to the situation. If Izzy has good numbers against the 3 coming up in the lineup, go with him. If he’s pitched the night before, go with Parnell or Beato. If there’s a lefty coming up, hell, use Byrdak. Mix and match if you have to. The fact is no one has separated themselves with their performance to be relied on as the bullpen “ace”.