The Indians will not alter their rotation for tonight’s Game 4 of the ALDS – even if it means pitching a guy who gave up seven runs in two innings in his only start of the season against the Yankees, making him 1-4 lifetime against the Yanks.
So forget C.C. Sabathia on short rest. Paul Byrd was manager Eric Wedge’s choice all year and Byrd is Wedge’s choice for tonight. Byrd knows he is walking into a lion’s den with the scent of raw meat all over him. The Yankees avoided elimination last night, making them enormously dangerous and still as desperate.
“They can be (more dangerous),” said Byrd, who’ll face Chien-Ming Wang. “I feel like we made a statement in Game 1, and I feel like they made a statement (in Game 3), especially being down 3-0. Offense showed a lot of signs of life. This game runs in cycles, so yeah, I think they made a statement.”
Wedge insisted all along he had no intentions of altering the formula that got him here. Dance with who brung ya, and all that.
“We’re going to move forward just as we had planned. Byrdie will be on the mound and we’ll go from there,” said Wedge. “It’s where we are. We knew we were going to need four starters, if it went that far here in the series. And that’s where we’re at. That’s what we’re going to go with.”
Byrd (15-8), with tremendous control (28 walks in 192.1 innings this season) is a fastball-slider-changeup pitcher who’ll mix in some sinkers, especially against lefties. He’s old school with his windup. Watch on a black and white TV (if you can find one) and you’ll swear it’s the 50’s. Despite Byrd’s lack of success against the Yankees, Wedge wants him over a pitcher with short rest. C.C. Sabathia then will go if there’s a Game 5. And Byrd was pumped about the chance – but said he would have understood if Wedge went the other route.
“If he did, I was fine with that, too. That’s his call. We didn’t know what the Yankees were going to do. We didn’t know what we were going to do. But I’m excited that he gave me the ball. I’ve got a little extra rest. I feel good, arm feel goods. I’m looking forward to (it),” Byrd said. “I’ve wanted to pitch. I would have been happy if we swept, but it didn’t happen. So I’m excited to take the ball for Game 4.”