|
Holes
in the Armor
The 2001 wiffleball season is still
a few weeks away, but at least three players are already scheduled
to miss some action. Some players and fans may immediately interpret
this as bad news, but in all honesty I think that the two teams
involved, the Holy Whites and the Horsemen, may actually be able
to benefit from the involuntary roster cut.
If these unavailable players hurt
anyone during their absence, it will be opposing teams. Seriously.
The Holy Whites and Horsemen are lucky because it means more playing
time for their star players. If the roles were reversed and Scott
Carmichael and Joey Creighton were unable to play, then I'd say
their teams would be doomed. But to paraphrase what the Commissioner
said in an earlier report, these missing players could be a blessing
in disguise.
For example, Nate Stuempfig is scheduled
to appear at only a half-dozen game days. That means for half of
the season, the Holy Whites will have to take the field without
him. For some teams this could be disastrous, but not for the Holy
Whites. With Nate Stuempfig out of the everyday lineup it will allow
league superstar Scott Carmichael to get more at-bats and pitch
more innings. Sure, Scott may suffer some extra wear and tear due
to the additional workload, but it's nothing the two-time MVP can't
handle.
What will be missed is Nate's pitching,
especially his amazing curveball, which helped earn him 2000 Play
of the Year honors. However, Nate didn't exactly excel at the plate
(he had an 0-for-10, 9K Winterball outing) at his most recent chance
to shine, and Scott plays well everywhere, so I think the Holy Whites
will actually end up playing better without Nate in the lineup.
In my last article I picked Nate as
the player to watch on his team, and I still think he will play
a large role in determining how successful the Holy Whites are,
but to be perfectly honest, he's not going to be nearly as important
as Scott Carmichael. Now that I've had a chance to look over the
schedule, and have seen how far apart the games are, I don't think
he's going to be the key player I originally thought he would be.
In order for Nate to contribute to
the success of his team, he's going to have to do what he does best:
pitch. He'll have a fresh arm whenever he returns and he'll be throwing
to hitters who haven't faced him as often as other pitchers. This
should be a big advantage for Nate during the first few games, and
if he starts hitting the ball, he will be a huge threat.
The Horsemen are experiencing a similar
issue with Clint Wattenberg. Captain Joey Creighton drafted his
best friend, knowing Clint wouldn't be able to play a full season.
Last I heard, Clint will only be able to play in approximately five
of the twelve game days. But just like the Holy Whites have Scott
Carmichael to fill in for Nate Stuempfig, Clint has last season's
MVP, Joey Creighton to fill in for him during the other seven game
days.
However, the Horsemen recently lost
Eric Christensen for part of the season, too. Eric suffered a severe
tendon tear in his right ankle during a soccer match and isn't expected
to return until June. Filling in for two players could be difficult,
even for Joey Creighton. Teammate Seth Yoder is going to have to
play like he did in last year's post-season, or else the Horsemen
will likely be out of playoff contention all season long. As I mentioned
above, fatigue shouldn't be a problem for these guys. The games
are spread out quite a bit, at times up to two weeks apart, so even
though these guys will be throwing twice as many innings and getting
twice as many at bats as other players, they should have more than
enough time for their bodies to recover.
When Clint returns, he will be expected
to pitch as well as he did last season, and continue hitting well.
Eric needs to wait until he's at 100% before attempting to come
back unless he's filling in to prevent a forfeit. Even in this case
he should be careful and should consider taking the loss so he doesn't
risk aggravating the injury. This team will be a real threat no
matter who's in the lineup, but I think the Horsemen will welcome
the return of both Clint and Eric.
None of the remaining three teams
seem to be having any problems with their players. It appears that
they will each be able to field four healthy players on opening
day, and hopefully throughout the entire season.
|
