This is bad enough. But Francona's comments after the game make it clear that he didn't just space out in the dugout or fall asleep a la 2000 U.S. Olympic Coach Tommy Lasorda, but rather that Francona has a bizarre and dangerously warped view of reality that should strike fear into the hearts of his pitchers. He had made 105 pitches, and it would have been good to give him a blow. That s an actual quote, including the uncomfortable last part. Dr. Francona believes that it's not the number of pitches, but whether or not the pitcher is doing well.
Guys put pressure on their arm and their body when they're out of whack.
He's one of the few guys capable of pitching into the ninth inning. Any pitcher is capable of pitching into the ninth inning, especially if they're being efficient. The relationship between workload and injury is so much stronger than the one between ability and injury that it boggles my little mind to know that a major-league manager can hold Francona s beliefs. I'd let him stay out there for five or six innings and save your bullpen. But I'm not sure that's the correct thing to do.