There are mere hours left in the regular season, and it's all hands on deck, reliever Chad Durbin tells his peers in the Philladelphia bullpen. He might as well be speaking to all players on all contenders. You never know when you will be called upon in a big moment, and the season could turn on your pitch, your at-bat, your outing.
Ryan Madson allowed three runs without retiring a batter in Chicago on Aug. 28, in a brutal loss to the Cubs, and made up his mind that he needed to be a little bit more focused. He and Durbin talked in the clubhouse about how that game was a little test before the final month of the season, and Madson
hasn't allowed an earned run since that game. When the bullpen phone rings, Madson said on Friday afternoon, the sound generates more adrenaline now that it does at any other time of the season -- and it rang for Madson a few hours later, and again, he contributed scoreless work in the Phillies' win over Washington on Friday night. All hands on deck.
Until a few weeks ago, Jose Mijares was in Double-A, and the first time the Twins put him into a game, on Sept. 13, they had a 12-2 lead. He retired the side on that night without incident, and with every outing, the Twins have worked him into situations that carry more and more responsibility, and Mijares just keeps getting hitters out. The lefty has made
seven appearances in two weeks and allowed two hits and no walks and struck out four. "The amazing thing is that the kid has no fear," said Twins pitching coach Rick Anderson. "He has such a calm demeanor."
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Buster Olney
