Homer Bailey: You Deserved Better Than This

Homer Bailey did not deserve what he was served by Dave Weathers last night.

Bailey was pitching one of the best games you could imagine.  Through seven innings, he had limited the St. Louis Cardinals to just two hits and was ahead 3-0.

Bailey entered the eighth inning with the dreaded 100-pitch count just in sight.  After giving up a pinch-hit single to Cody Rasmus, he coaxed Brenden Ryan to fly out.  With a man on and one out, Bailey walked Skip Schumaker, giving Dusty Baker something to do besides chew on a toothpick. 

Baker called veteran lefty Arthur Rhodes in to face Jarrett Hoffpauir, who was making his big-league debut at the plate. After walking the rookie on four pitches, Baker did the unthinkable. 

With the bases loaded and the best player on the planet coming up, he brought in David Weathers, who is owned unconditionally by Albert Pujols.

Pujols was batting .500 against Weathers, with a pair of home runs and five RBI. In just a few pitches, the Cardinals went from a 3-0 drubbing to a 4-3 comeback-victory-to-be.

Thank you, Dave Weathers, thank you Dusty Baker.  My heart goes out to you Homer. 

I have probably been the harshest critic of Bailey here at the B/R.  Excuse me while I wipe some of this egg off my face. Yuck.  It really tastes like crap when it is served with humble pie.

On May 24, right here on this very spot, I essentially crucified Bailey, and for that, I am deeply, deeply distraught.  Please accept my apologies Homer and continue to pitch with the Reds.

On a night when the planets were in perfect alignment for Mr. Bailey, all Baker could think about was making a change and playing the percentages.

I am reminded of a quote by former Red pitcher Jim O'Toole who said (and I paraphrase), "If I am pitching a shutout in the seventh inning, there is no way in hell I am coming out."

Of course, when you are an All-Star game starter, it is easier to deal with a nervous manager than it is when you have your own personal path to and from Louisville to Cincinnati.

Bailey should have won the game and had 7.1 innings of shutout ball to brag about.  Instead he is charged with two earned runs and gets no decision.

The crazy thing about it is that if the Reds had won the game (and they had their chance in the bottom of the ninth, with the bases loaded and Brandon Phillips batting), Weathers would have picked up the victory.  Wouldn't that have been ironic?

Hey Dusty, please start looking at the computer and seeing who owns whom before making changes.