Yesterday, Tigers manager Jim Leyland played four players -- Austin Jackson, Jhonny Peralta, Brandon Inge, and Casper Wells -- who were a combined 4-for-51 off Bruce Chen.
Jackson was 1-for-9, Peralta 2-for-14, Inge 1-for-21 and Wells 0-for-7 heading into the game.
Why did he go counter to the small-sample size stats he usually relies on to make his decisions? He told the media:
"Shows how smart I am. ... The way I look at it, they're due."
So let's see how due they really were. Yesterday against Chen, they were a combined ... 1-for-9 with four strikeouts.
Ouch. I guess they weren't so due after all. If only Leyland had said, "I don't make lineup decisions based on a handful of at-bats against a certain pitcher" we'd be heralding his saberness today, but instead he says they're due and proves Joe Morgan's frequent thesis wrong again.
Here's how the individuals did in their at bats against Chen:
Jackson
First inning -- Strikes out swinging
Third inning -- Fly out to right field
Sixth inning -- Grounds out to pitcher
Peralta
Second inning -- Fly out to left field
Fifth inning -- Strikes out swinging
Inge
Third inning -- Strikeout on a foul tip
Fifth inning -- Strikes out on a foul tip
Wells
Third inning -- Singles to center field
Sixth inning -- Pops out to first baseman