Article: Should Scott Diamond Be Shutdown?

[Cody Christie]

You can view the page at http://www.twinsdaily.com/content.php?1046-Should-Scott-Diamond-be-shutdown

[wavedog]

I would lean to shutting him down. He has pitched 188 innings which is 16% higher than last year. He is not pitching that well and we don't need him to push him and have that result in an injury. There is no Strasburg impact to having him miss the playoffs so shut him down. The only question I had is do we we have any starters that could take his place? I guess Duensing could move into the starting rotation.

[Shane Wahl]

They didn't call anyone up to take his place, so no.

[Winston Smith]

Yes only 15 games left. Better safe than sorry!

[Forever34]

Part of me says yes, he is clearly ineffective at this point and the innings count is the most likely cause. You don't want to risk injury for what is expected to be at least our second best starting pitcher either.

 

The Bert Byleven in me says: "No, quit being a pussy. This will build up his arm strength and stamina and he'll be a better pitcher for it. Plus dealing with adversity is important for the mental aspect of pitching. Get me another beer."

[nicksaviking]

Sit him down. I think we need to have another look at Drew Butera's arm. Drew's best shot at making the team next year may be in the rotation anyway.

[Thegrin]

give him one more start, then sit him. Let Duensing get his final starts.

[greengoblinrulz]

Absolutely not....his innings are fine & he's not even @ 20% yet. He needs to build future arm strength for future & also figure out how to fight thru periods of bein hit hard. His velocity is there, showing his arm if fine & that he's just bein hit harder....not the first period this yr where thats happenned. He fought thru the first time.

Im not really sure if he's a real pitcher for future or just had a good 3 months....wouldn't be the first guy to fool an organization.

Scot's not 21/22 either....he needs to prove he's a future workhorse capable of 200innings a yr........its only 2 or 3 more starts

[DAM DC Twins Fans]

Yes shut him down--nothing to be gained if he pitches another 15-20 innings. While slight, he could risk long-term injury by pitching with a tired arm.

[h2oface]

i heard that scott diamond has changed his name to scott cubic zirconia. if he continues his performance trend that has surfaced in the last 5 outings (the bean ball attempt start counts...... and it didn't start good) he will end up around 11-11 with an era 4.00-4.20! that looks an awful lot like blackburn at his best. not a pleasant image.

[Badsmerf]

I leaned toward yes at first also, but Bert came to me also and reminded me that this is a big boy game. You learn and get better by gutting through the tough times. What good does shutting him down do? Avoid injury? Are you ****ing kidding me? Instead of letting him try to finish the season strong and going into the offseason with confidence you want to pull the plug at the first sign of adversity? These aren't fragile teenage girls. Get a grip dudes. Even if he gets rocked, who cares? He needs to get better and be able to finish a season. I've had enough of the coddling. This is baseball. Mauer and Morneau have been ripped for not finishing seasons, and this year they actually are. Mauer is a little dinged up, but I bet he still plays.

[Brock Beauchamp]

I was all for phasing him out of the rotation gently a month ago. Give him a day or two extra between starts, pull him an inning early, that sort of thing.

 

Now? I don't think it matters much. He only has three starts left.

[IdahoPilgrim]

This is all going on the assumption that his inning count is what has caused his recent drop in performance.

 

That may be, but let's not rule out that this might be who he really is. He had a great start, and is probably our best bet for a rotation role next year, but let's be honest and admit that his early season performance far exceeded his expected value going into the season.

 

I play golf, and I believe firmly that, no matter how well I play on the first 15 holes, the last 3 will almost inevitably bring my score back to what it really should be.

[Thrylos]

This rotation is really hurting... They are only 4.5 hearthy starters (Walters is the .5). Shut down Diamond and you have issues...

 

Funny thing and shows how bad the Twins' rotation has been this season: The olden days the magic number was 200 IP a season and we were saying that there were few Twins that hit that. Look at the numbers. This season only Diamond will hit more than 150 and only him and Duensing more than 100. If there is one to shut down, that would be Duensing IMNSHO

[70charger]

 

The Bert Byleven in me says: "No, quit being a pussy. This will build up his arm strength and stamina and he'll be a better pitcher for it. Plus dealing with adversity is important for the mental aspect of pitching. Get me another beer."

 

This part. And get me another beer.

[Top Gun]

I think it should be up to Scott. If he feels great and wants to pitch let him. If he is hurting, tired and having problems, he should take a rest.

[old nurse]

This rotation is really hurting... They are only 4.5 hearthy starters (Walters is the .5). Shut down Diamond and you have issues...

 

Funny thing and shows how bad the Twins' rotation has been this season: The olden days the magic number was 200 IP a season and we were saying that there were few Twins that hit that. Look at the numbers. This season only Diamond will hit more than 150 and only him and Duensing more than 100. If there is one to shut down, that would be Duensing IMNSHO

 

DeVries had 150 innings this year. The Twins starters are so bad they could use the bullpen for a couple innings each as there are 9 bullpen arms plus the staff leader in ERA, who happens to play a vital role as third string catcher, available to do a game if need be.