Eyre Thanks the Fans, Ponders Future
Hard-working lefty might call it quits
By DAN STAMM
Updated 7:30 PM EST, Thu, Nov 5, 2009
Burly reliever Scott Eyre looks like a baseball player but after the Phightins lost their fight in the World Series the Eyre might be leaving the balloon.
Could a scoreless inning of work in Game 6 be the last time Eyre uses his burly frame to toss a pitch in the Major Leagues?
It would make sense for the 37-year-old southpaw to walk away from the game despite having just posted the most successful season of his career. He faces off-season surgery to repair “loose fragments” in his throwing elbow and to try to come back could be hard.
Eyre's MLB Blog revealed some of his thoughts on the decision ahead:
“Like I said, this group of guys is making it very hard for me to say, ‘Hey, I'm going to go home and retire.’ For me personally, it will be a family decision. Ruben Amaro Jr. has a lot to say about that as well, obviously.” He wrote. “I still love to play the game and I still love to go out there and compete. And I still feel like I do a good job with it.”
Sound like he is leaning towards coming back, especially when you consider his regard for his star-studded teammates.
“I just want to say this is the most fun group of guys I've played with during 11 years in the big leagues,” he wrote. “…This group is unbelievable to be around. We've got superstars who don't act like it.”
But, Eyre left little to prove -- he has played baseball for over a decade and already has that World Series ring that drives so many veterans to stick around.
Let’s hope that Eyre wants to come back and that the Phillies want him back in the pen. He was the perfect lefty specialist for the 2009 Phils -- Jesse Orosco-esque -- a guy who could come in just for a hitter or two and whom most of the time got the job done.
Just look at the stats:
Eyre was 2-1 with a 1.50 ERA and 22 strikeouts while giving up only three homers and 16 walks in 30 innings of work. And, he got better as the season wore on even as he spent time injured -- from August 1 on he only gave up five hits and no runs in 11 appearances.
He kept that hot streak going into the playoffs despite not being able to even fully extend his throwing arm. In seven postseason appearances he allowed only one run and six hits over 4.1 innings.
Simply put Eyre earned his right to come back to the Phils. If he walks away he had a message for the fans.
“If this is it I've enjoyed my time here as much as I've enjoyed anything in this game. Thanks for helping make that happen.”
First Published: Nov 5, 2009 7:12 PM EST
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