During the first game of the NLDS on Saturday, the Brewers blew open a pitchers' duel on Prince Fielder's two-run homer with first base open and two outs. It was a surprising decision for manager Kirk Gibson to a) leave Ian Kennedy in and b) pitch to Fielder at all, and when it didn't work out, you knew the criticism wouldn't be far behind.
Kirk Gibson Regrets Pitching To Prince Fielder, Says He Made “A Poor Decision”
No one would have blinked if Gibson stood by his decision, proclaiming faith in his 20-game winner, Ian Kennedy. Instead, Gibson expressed regret over his decision:
“We had different options,” Gibson said. “We could have brought (left-hander) Joe Patterson in, who has actually handled Fielder well. We could have walked him and let Ian face (Rickie) Weeks...“I just felt bad; I made a poor decision,” Gibson said. “Sometimes that’s how the game goes. But there’s another game tomorrow. We’ll be optimistic; we’ll be upbeat.”
Probably the most disturbing quote came from Ian Kennedy:
“There were thoughts to do that (walk him), but I wasn’t going to do that,” Kennedy said. “If that was the case (we) might as well just bring Joe Pa (Paterson) in to face him lefty-lefty.Really? Joe Pa? That’s the nickname? Is he interested in country music or magic shows? Does he have a favorite food? What kind of car does he drive? Where’s he from? These are all better ideas for a nickname than the first two syllables of a guy’s name. Get it together, Eee-Ken.
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