The only thing that motivates a professional athlete is playing time.
The desire to be competitive drives athletes. So the best way to stoke that fire is the have healthy competition for positions.
In the past weeks, manager Joe Maddon was not too pleased with the effort of his 3, 4 and 5 starters. He had to resort to "bullpen" days instead of putting out a starting pitcher. It was a wake up call to his staff that you have to perform in order to be on the post season roster.
As a result of this sledgehammer to the skull clue, the starters have been good the last week, including Haren, Hendricks and Hammel.
Fans are looking well ahead of the Wild Card game to see how Maddon will operate his pitching corps. Arrieta will be spent on the Wild Card contest next Wednesday. Lester will be the next starter if the Cubs prevail over the Pirates.
Game 2 of the NLCS is the nagging concern. Of Hammel, Hendricks and Haren, who do you trust?
Until this week, no one.
What may happen is a minor league tandem game for Game 2. A tandem game is where 2 starters split the game and throw 4 innings each. I suggest a Hammel-Haren duo could work. That would leave Hendrick, the more consistent of the three, to pitch Game 3 depending on the situation. If it is an elimination game, Maddon could use Arrieta on 4 days rest.
But it good to see Maddon instilling competition for roster spots at the end of the season. It makes the club better. It makes the players hungry for playing time. It makes them want to perform at a high level.
