Another perfect example of Leyland putting a player in a position to fail...
Yesterday, on the heels of Ryan Raburn's dramatic three-run bomb with 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th, Leyland called on Valverde to pitch the 10th. Papa Grande responded with a stellar 1-2-3 inning. When the Tigers failed to notch a hit in the bottom of the 10th, Leyland again resorted to his closer for the 11th.
Folks, this is a small but dangerous decision. All season long, Valverde thrived when pitching just one inning. Why force the issue? Perry was available. So was Bonine. And Brad Thomas. There were plenty of options. Yet, Leyland called on Valverde once again, and he gave up the two-run triple. Valverde pitched superbly in the first half of the season. And he's struggled big-time (like the rest of the team) since the All-star break. With his 1-2-3 tenth, let the dude sit! He did his job. Oh, Leyland.
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