As a big Mets fan, it was tough to root for Tom when we first signed him. Sure I respected him, but he’d beaten my team too many times to not harbor a little grudge against the man.
Then you get to watch him. Over the course of 5 seasons, I’ve watched this guy do everyting right. I’m not talking exclusively (or even primarily) about on the mound, either. This is a guy who never creates a problem, never sounds off when the bullpen blows his lead, rarely ever shows up an umpire, was dedicated to perfecting the little things (no one’s a better sac bunter and he’s one of the best fielding pitchers out there), and excelled despite the fact that he didn’t have a blazing fastball or sharp breaking stuff. He’s basically a fastball/change pitcher, without a great fastball. So how’d he get to 300 wins?
Ability to locate his pitches, of course, but it’s his mental toughness that blows my mind. The man never gives into a hitter. 10-pitch, 12-pitch, 14 pitch at-bat, and he doesn’t just give in and groove a fastball and hope his fielders pick him up. He’s locating, changing speeds, going off-speed when he’s behind in the count, maximizing whatever advantage he can create against the hitter. And if he thinks it’ll help, he’ll lose the current hitter to get to the next one. He’s a chess player in a pitcher’s body. Unbelievable.
At this point in his career, he’s not really the “ace” of the staff anymore. But he elevates the entire staff by his example and instruction (how many times does he end up talking shop with Maine or Heilman after a tough inning?), and has become easily my favorite player in the game, right up there with my childhood hero (Kieth Hernandez).
Dwight Gooden went 24-4 with a 1.53 ERA back in ‘85. That was talent. Talent flames out.
300 wins means 20 years of success. It means having to learn and relearn how to pitch and adapt to your changing body. It means having to react to hitters who have learned how to react to you, after 40 or 50 confrontations. It means conditioning, sound mechanics, and God-given talent. It's almost ridiculous to say it when talking about Tom, but in today's day-and-age, it means not getting arrested for driving 120 on the LIE with a gat in your belt and narcotics laid out in the passenger seat.
In short, it means being a professional.
Thanks, Tom.
1 comment:
Well said, definitely a phenomenal accomplishment. I thought it was especially fitting that he drove in the first run in his own support.
Speaking of which, I couldn't disagree more with Miller and Morgan when they expressed disapproval of Milledge's decision to steal 2nd. Their point was that if he gets thrown out, then Glavine leads off the next inning. Granted, I'd always prefer to start 1-2-3 rather than 9-1-2, but the worst case is that Glavine leads off and makes an out. So what? Does the inning automatically come to an end b/c Glavine got a lead-off out? Are the Mets not allowed to get on base and score if the top of the order comes up with one out already in place? To me, I'd much rather see Milledge take a shot at 2nd. If he fails, I don't see this as a big problem. If he succeeds, well of course as we all saw the upside is huge - you plate the first run to settle Glavine and the team down.
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