Ross says once position player takes mound, it's game over and let's get home
Cubs manager David Ross was careful not to criticize White Sox counterpart Tony La Russa, but he did share some thoughts on the question of, "Should a hitter swing at a 3-0 pitch from a position player who takes the mound in a blowout?"
That happened this week when White Sox star rookie Yermin Mercedes homered on a 3-0 pitch from Willians Astudillo in a game the Sox won 16-4. The Twins threw at Mercedes the next day and La Russa said he thought Mercedes was wrong to swing.
Anyway, the Cubs were in the same spot a few weeks ago when they used three position players on the mound in a 10-0 loss to Atlanta.
"When I bring in a position player to pitch, I'm conceding the game is over and I would like to go home as fast as possible and turn the page," Ross said. "Having my position player be upset if the other team swings 3-0 is not something I'm going to get caught up in. I'm already mad we're getting our butt kicked. I've probably checked out from even giving signs. That's just me personally.
"This isn't a South Side-North Side thing to me. That's just my opinion on when the game is over and conceded, we have to play til the end, a position player's out there - I'm ready to go home. Everybody swing, I'd rather my position player throw strikes. He shouldn't be 3-0. There's a lot in that to me that I don't have a problem with, personally."
Of course, that Atlanta game produced one of the most memorable moments of the Cubs season when Anthony Rizzo struck out reigning MVP Freddie Freeman.
"Bringing in Rizz the other day for Freddie Freeman was really cool, how he punched him out," Ross said. "I wasn't happy about the game, but I think that was great TV."
Twitter: @McGrawDHBulls