BASEBALL Cubs' Wood, Prior ran out of gas in playoffs
The two pitchers entered the NL Series with momentum, then just fizzled.
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
CHICAGO -- Kerry Wood said he "choked" in Game 7. A better explanation, one that is tough for a proud athlete like Wood to admit, is that he simply was gassed.
Like he did with San Francisco starter Russ Ortiz a year ago, manager Dusty Baker rode Wood and Mark Prior extremely hard to get the Cubs deep into the playoffs. But in the end, in the ultimate games, their heavy use throughout the season and in the playoffs limited their effectiveness.
Prior entered the National League Championship Series having gone 4-1 with a 2.41 earned-run average in his last five starts, striking out 52 in 372/3 innings. Wood went into it 4-0 with a 0.96 ERA in his last five starts, striking out 50 in 371/3.
But against Florida, they went 1-2 with a 5.07 ERA, getting only 24 strikeouts in 262/3 innings in four games. Fatigue had to be a significant factor.
Heavy reliance on hot starters is a Baker trademark. His teams generally have the most 120-pitch starts in the major leagues and 2003 was no exception. The Cubs' starters went 120-plus pitches 28 times, with Wood doing it 13 times.
By the time he left the mound spent in the sixth inning of the seventh game against Florida, Wood had thrown 4,007 pitches. That was the most in the majors.
Despite missing 31/2 weeks in July and August, Prior was only 237 pitches behind Wood. He was third in the majors (also behind Barry Zito) with 3,770 pitches. Prior averaged the most pitches per start in the majors, 114.2. Wood was second at 111.3.
This was really a case of history repeating itself for Baker.
Ortiz played the part of Wood and Prior in 2002.
His late-season roll helped Baker's Giants reach the playoffs. He won twice in the first round, carrying the Giants over Atlanta (a la Wood) but then hit a wall.
In Ortiz's last three postseason starts, he gave up 13 runs in 122/3 innings. That included Game 6 of the World Series, when he could not nail down the 5-0 lead over Anaheim.
Ortiz finished 2002 with 4,018 total pitches, more than every pitcher except Randy Johnson. Livan Hernandez, who also pitched for Baker, was fourth in the majors with 3,814 pitches.
This trend says two things: It's time Baker starts taking it a little easier on his best arms, having them throw perhaps 10 fewer pitches per start, and Cubs GM Jim Hendry must do a better job stocking his bullpen so Baker isn't always tempted to rely on his starters.
There's no way Prior should have thrown 116 pitches in the Cubs' 12-3 victory in Game 2 of the NLCS. But that's what happens when you can't trust your relievers. The lack of trust catches up to you in the end.