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Friday, May 12, 2006
Reitsma will be just fine
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Terence Moore
That mighty sigh of relief you heard Friday night from the direction of 755 Hank Aaron Drive was created by the choppers and the chanters after John Smoltz, the Hall of Fame starter, also performed his former role of John Smoltz, the Hall of Fame closer. In case you haven’t figured it out by now, that means he threw every inning of the Braves’ 6-2 victory over the absolutely wretched Nationals.
Three up, three down for the visitors from Washington in the top of a ninth inning that lasted about as long as it took for the first burst of fireworks at Turner Field to brighten the dark sky in the aftermath.
Translated: No Chris Reitsma, no meltdown, no reason to wonder if Smoltz can pitch every game the rest of the season in this dual role for the Braves.
Not to worry if you’re among those choppers and chanters, though. Sometimes, I get these hunches. For instance: You might have to choose between filling your gas tank and paying the mortgage this summer, and Reitsma will be just fine as the Braves’ closer. Presumably the latter will happen in this century. Well, that and before the New York Mets (or the Philadelphia Phillies, for that matter) get such a ridiculous lead in the National League East by then that it won’t matter.
Thus the question: Exactly when during this century will Reitsma make the transformation from great to brutal to great again after he consistently takes the mound during the clutch?
Don’t know. This is what we do know about Reitsma in the midst of his horrific struggles that have produced a 7.43 ERA, opponents ripping his pitches for a .351 batting average and seven blown saves in his past 13 opportunities.
We know that he’s no Dan Kolb, and that is pretty good. For one, Reitsma doesn’t have to sink (literally, since Kolb is a sinkerball pitcher) or swim with a single pitch. His wonderful change-up and decent curveball get even better during his appearances, courtesy of the flames around his fastball. For another, when it comes to Reitsma as the anti-Kolb, he actually is giving himself a chance these days to recover from his woes sooner than later. That’s because Reitsma is doing something that Kolb foolishly refused to do last year during his first and only season with the Braves.
Reitsma is hugging the greatness that is Smoltz in the Braves’ clubhouse instead of ignoring it.
“I talk to John almost every day, if not every day,” said Reitsma, nodding across the way toward Smoltz’s locker that hasn’t moved forever. It might as well have been located on the other side of Mars when Kolb was around, because his pride wouldn’t allow him to walk the four or five giant steps in that direction. Kolb needed to make that trip often after arriving from Milwaukee as Smoltz’s designated successor as closer and failing miserably from the start. Instead of huddling with the highly approachable Smoltz — who, among other things, is either 1a or 1b as the smartest player in the game and became just the sixth pitcher ever to post three consecutive 40-save seasons — Kolb said he preferred to struggle alone.
Whatever. Before long, Kolb lost his closer’s job to Reitsma and then to Kyle Farnsworth, and then he was back in Milwaukee.
Reitsma doesn’t plan to go anywhere but back to prominence as a closer — you know, when he isn’t seeking advice from Smoltz about everything.
“Whenever you have the opportunity to work with somebody who has that kind of a track record, you want to pick his brain,” Reitsma said. “It’s foolish not to take advantage of that situation, and John and I already are good buddies, so things sort of just come up whenever we’re eating dinner or whatever it might be.”
Said Smoltz, “It’s just a matter of him getting those weapons of his in the right sequence. Chris’ deal is going to come down to the mental adjustment of how do I become successful in a negative environment? That’s really what he deals with more than anything else, because right away — before he’s taken the role — people are saying, ‘Oh, man. The bullpen is horrible.’”
Unfortunately, those people have been correct so far. Now it’s time for Reitsma to prove them wrong. Smoltz says he will, and whatever Smoltz says is fine with me.
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