[WhatABonanza]

Cal and ASU are both having killer seasons.

The one thing that concerns me most is that we've used Jolene often. This is nothing like last year, when she pitched almost non-stop. But she has now pitched on 3 consecutive days for several of the Pac-12 series. She doesn't start on Saturdays, but at the first hint of trouble, she comes in.

ASU has done a much better job of resting their pitchers. Escobedo's innings count is rising, but she has fewer appearances. She's not warming up (or pitching in the game) on off days.

Even if this means Cal might lose a game or two, I wish she had not pitched last Saturday. And I wish she wasn't pitching today. Even next week -- I'd rather have her sit one full day against ASU than have her pitching every day. We want her strong for the post-season. And we also want Arioto working out of more tough situations. I'd rather win the World Series than win every remaining Pac-12 game.

[HairOfTheBear]

L Zig's Mother tweeted that Val is apparently sick today which probably contributed to the early hook. And I mentioned in another thread that Ari is out for the rest of the season with an injury. I suppose that means if Val isn't on, then the Bears are going to ride with Jo.

[WhatABonanza]

Sorry that Vil is ill, but that's good to know.

My one gripe with Ninemire has been her tendency to ride one horse all the way. I remember she wanted a top regional seed and kept pushing Thorsen one year - even though Cal couldn't host a regional. I do think this has an impact in June.

But for all of us, our strength is our weakness. My guess is that she is hyper-competitive and wants to win every game. And that trait shows up in our players. And that, of course, helps a ton in the post-season. So I acknowledge the trade-off here.

[CalFanatic]

Originally Posted by WhatABonanza

Sorry that Vil is ill, but that's good to know.

My one gripe with Ninemire has been her tendency to ride one horse all the way. I remember she wanted a top regional seed and kept pushing Thorsen one year - even though Cal couldn't host a regional. I do think this has an impact in June.

But for all of us, our strength is our weakness. My guess is that she is hyper-competitive and wants to win every game. And that trait shows up in our players. And that, of course, helps a ton in the post-season. So I acknowledge the trade-off here.

Meh, I totally see where you are coming from but I kinda have to disagree. Ninemire used both pitchers from 2003-2005. In 2006 when it was just Thorsen and Frankiewicz, Lauren wasn't ( in my opinion) good enough to give us a chance to win on a regular basis. She came in and Thor shut down. Lauren didn't have a really big arensal. She had that changeup and went in and out (but her delivery was so illegal in the fact that she was outside of the lanes that I wouldn't even call her screwball a screwball... it was more a fastball just pitched at a different angle). Ninemire had to throw Thorsen. Up until last year Ninemire has done a decent job switching up innings between pitchers.

[BearyBearyGood]

Pretty amazing that while sick, Val still managed to go yard on her first at bat.