Out With the Old, In With the Less Old

The Philadelphia Phillies made a huge decision on Monday afternoon -- the decision to start future Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez against the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night -- leaving manager Charlie Manuel to break the news to veteran pitcher, Jamie Moyer.

Moyer leads the team in wins (10-9), as he did last year with 16, but let's face it, his performance this season has not been up to par and the move was inevitable.

But how did the 46-year-old take the news?

"Jamie was a total professional and team player when we let him know of the decision to move him to the bullpen," Manuel said in a statement.

It's been since 1996 that Moyer has regulary pitched as a reliever, but the Phils have little doubt that he will give it all he's got.

"He has been and will continue to be a very important part of this team," said Manuel.

As for three-time CY Young Award winner Martinez, Wednesday's start will be his first appearance in the Majors last season when the Mets played the Cubs. Since signing with the Phils in July, he went 1-1 with a 5.11 ERA (seven earned runs in 12 1/3 innings) and 16 strikeouts in Minor League rehab starts.

“Based on our reports on how Pedro has pitched in his rehab starts, we felt it was time to move him into our rotation,” according to Manuel.

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