September 11th, 2016 at 6:00 am 
by Ron Cervenka 
“I feel sick to my stomach. Rich obviously had a perfect game and an opportunity of a lifetime.” – Dave Roberts (Photo credit – Steve Mitchell)
In a decision that will undoubtedly be debated for decades, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts removed left-hander Rich Hill after 89 pitches with him needing just six outs to become only the 24th player in baseball history to throw a perfect game and the first Dodger to do so since Sandy Koufax on September 9, 1965.
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answer is simple. Did the DODGERS win the game?
Absolutely the right choice; yet the decision was as gut wrenching as it should be. Doc made a choice; it was for the #Dodgers
At first, total disbelief. Later in talking with my wife (who absolutely would have voted no),I said if you take the emotion out of the decision, knowing that the Dodgers need Hill for the last 21 games and hopeful post season, and knowing he is dealing with blister hot spots, it makes sense. My wife simply looked at me and said baseball is emotion.
I feel for Rich Hill, but I still believe it was the right decision.
In my humble honest opinion Roberts made the right move not only for the team but for rich hill.
If you take the emotion out of it he made the right choice albeit unpopular
He also may have done rich hill a HUGE solid as if he would have gone down due to another blister he may have been forced to shut down which would be a huge blow not only for his free agency stock but for our playoff hopes
I for one am glad to have a manager like Dave that has the balls to make the Correct decision, unlike another manager who shall not be named who let the players dictate what would happen just to see the next batter tie or win the game and only then would he make the change. Not saying it wont happen with dave but with the last manager it seemed like it happened way too often
Just my .02
Like many, I was angry with Doc’s decision… at first. I asked myself how many no-hitters Roberts was going to stand in the way of, that if Yasiel Puig could sacrifice himself for the team, then why couldn’t Roberts do the same? Then the reality of the situation set in. So…
How many no-hitters/perfect games will Dave Roberts stand in the way of? As many as it takes to get the Dodgers a World Championship.
Roberts made the correct choice, again. It was a managerial choice. It was the safe choice, protecting Rich Hill from any recurring blisters. But to remove him with only 89 pitches under his belt in the eighth inning of a freaking perfect game???
Wow… I don’t have the guts to do that to Rich Hill. Dave Roberts did.
Pass me the jar of pickle juice, please.
A very difficult decision but Roberts is paid to make those. The Dodgers need Rich Hill down the stretch and into the post season. As much as a perfect game (no guarantee) would have been wonderful for Hill, the Dodgers,Dodger fans, baseball, the team comes first.
With what has been accomplished in most trying circumstances with the Dodgers it is a bit difficult to question the decision.
I agree with AC’s wife that baseball is emotion but at times the Front Office and manager must use their emotion (gut wrenching) to make decisions they feel are in the better interests of the team. eg. trading A.J. Ellis or pulling Rich Hill after seven perfect innings. Those things are not done without emotion.
It was a tough decision. Doc’s job is to make tough decisions. Doc did his job.
It wasn’t about winning that game. With a 5-0 lead Doc could afford to give him some slack. It was about future games, possibly about WS games.
Cruzin: “…if Yasiel Puig could sacrifice himself for the team, then why couldn’t Roberts do the same?” Doc wasn’t deciding whether to sacrifice himself, he was deciding whether to possibly sacrifice Rich Hill. Or maybe sacrifice the team for Rich Hill.
Maybe he could have completed the perfecto and come back in 5 days and do it again. Or maybe he’s waking this morning with a big juicy blister on his finger. Hindsight is 20/20, but foresight is not so easy.
Doc made the call that needed to be made. He may not win the title, but he is the MOY in my book.
I was referring to Roberts sacrificing his managerial acumen and allow Rich Hill to stay in the game. As the circumstances of the moment set in, I allowed myself to be lulled into the comfort of team vs. self. It still felt like a “loss” though…
Rich Hill’s curveball had more break to it than I think I’ve ever seen in the game. Just like a bowler spins the ball down the ally, it was like Hill was “bowling” his pitches into the “strike” zone. Dude was certainly locked into the zone.
Rich Hill threw an absolutely phenomenal game last night. What an absolute treat for fans. Has he given up any runs as a Dodger yet?
That’s what I’m focusing on.
And oh, that catch by Puig!
In my opinion, he should have handled it like Bochy did a few weeks ago when Matt Moore was well into the 100s on his pitch count. Batter by batter assessments. Trusting his pitcher and telling him to be completely honest with him about his finger. The moment the no-hitter is broken up would be the moment he’s lifted from the game.
That’s 2 no-no’s that Roberts has stopped this year.
With that said, I have to hand it to the manager for sticking to his principles. He truly believed he was doing what was best for the club in the long run and he knew that criticism would be coming his way, and he didn’t allow the future scrutiny and criticism to affect his decision. The man has guts, that’s for sure. So I won’t criticize the move because he stuck to his principles.
I hope that this doesn’t negatively affect the clubhouse, and that Hill doesn’t choose to go elsewhere this off-season because of what happened.
Man! Was Hill dealing or what?
It’s a tough one Evan.We never seem to be satisfied with a manager. For Roberts the longer term is this season. It’s not next year or five years down the road. He made a decision to protect the team’s assets for the present run. From my perspective I would sooner err on the side of caution than lose Hill again with his blister problem.
He will be 37 in March and is in his second season of premier pitching. I doubt this will affect his decision after the season. Dollars and length of contact will.If he is offered the most for the longest period of time by the Dodgers he will be a Dodger. I personally don’t think he will be offered 3-5 years by the Dodgers.
I am now convinced that Dave Roberts will never manage a no-hitter. He will always have an excuse for removing a guy. While his intentions may be noble (or at least he will sell them as such), this is as prime of an example of how the game has changed as you will ever find.
If this is what defines a great manager, I would never have been a great manager.
If the Dodgers do not win the World Series then Roberts’ “nobility” goes out the window.
And for the love of God, somebody PLEASE pass CruzinBlue the pickle juice.
I disagree Ron. If Robert’s decision is seen as possibly a noble one it will always be a noble one regardless of the final outcome of the season. It would be noble because of the degree of difficulty and the criticism he knew he would take, not that a WS championship could be guaranteed because of it. Perhaps it means the team has a shot to complete for one. It would be noble because of his honesty and courage in making such a decision.
I respect him as a manager and I don’t think he was selling anything. I don’t think he is self-centered enough to declare himself noble. I think he did what he thought was right for the team and as such doesn’t have to sell anything. It was his call.
Roberts decision was a bad one. Ball players are treated as three year olds. Would you sit out a ball player on the last day of the season who is batting .399 , for a chance of hitting .400? Hitting for a cycle in a game or have already hit three home runs to be removed for a better devensive player? The point I am making is when a manager does this the clubhouse moral goes way down. Having a good clubhouse moral is way more important. A perfect game has only happen 23 times in the past 140 years? You give Hill a chance at immortality. He is 36 years old. If he gives up a hit then you take him out. It is very simple. When Rick and Dave said they have a sick feeling in their stomach about the decision you know as a player they made THE wrong call.
Thanks, Ron. Taking out a rookie coming back from TJ is one thing, but a 37-year old veteran isn’t getting many more shots at history. I don’t know if a World Series ring would make up for that chance, but the Dodgers sure owe him one. I also agree with Evan that you should take it batter by batter, which is how Roberts usually uses his ‘pen anyway. It seems like there was a hard pitch count and that was that.
Thank you. I’ve been trying to get my hands on that jar of pickle juice so you can deliver it in person to Rich Hill. That way he can soak that blistered finger of his and maybe next time Roberts will let Hill throw 90 pitches instead of 89.
If I have this wrong, please clarify. In your first 2 sentence you appear to express a belief that Doc would pull a pitcher because he’s pitching a no-hitter. Most likely that is a common opinion being expressed on the Dodgers official site, I haven’t looked, but I really never expected to see it here, particularly from you, or Harold for that matter.
I reckon it’s possible that you were indicating he would not allow pitchers to go 9 innings, regardless of circumstances. To that I would put forth Clayton Kershaw’s 3 complete game shutouts this year.
RR – no where did I say that and if you read my posts you will see I am in full accord with the decision that Dave Roberts made.
Sorry, Harold, I didn’t mean to imply that you did, or would. I only mentioned your name as the other primary writer of this blog.
I did read your posts and am aware of your position.
That is exactly my opinion, that Roberts will pull a pitcher no matter what based on pitch count or some other excuse.
And if you think Kershaw will pitch a CG before the end of the season, I’ll take that bet.
Of course Kersh won’t be pitching another CG before the end of the season, because of health issues. Same thing with Hill. Maybe in the postseason for both.
But when he was healthy Doc didn’t seem to have any issue with letting him complete those games. I believe it would be the same with Hill if there hadn’t been the blister issue. His concern was for future games, rather than that game, with a 5 run lead.
Stripling was different. He was a rookie, in his first MLB start, with a 1 run lead and had the go ahead run at the plate. From my seat (living room couch in Colorado) he appeared to be tiring. Also, unlike Hill, his pitch limit had been previously announced.
I do acknowledge that Doc can tend to be a mite quick on the hook sometimes, especially considering there’s so much worry about starters not going deep into games.
I guess what bothers me most is your use of the word “excuse”. An excuse is what one uses when not willing to acknowledge the reason for his decisions.
The future will tell if it was the right decision but my thoughts say it was.
Roberts made a bad decision. There have been only 23 perfect games in 140 years of baseball. He should have given Hill a chance. He is 36 years old. If he gave up a hit then take him out. It is very simple. What Roberts did was bring the clubhouse moral down very low. Good clubhouse moral is more important. You can not treat ball players as 3 year olds. When Rick and Dave said they felt sick to their stomachs with their decision that as a player you know they made THE WRONG Decision.
Want to see low clubhouse moral, let Hill pitch for individual accomplishment then go on DL for 30 days with blister problem.
Based on what I have read (appeared to be a blister forming) Roberts did what was best for the team at the expense of Hill’s opportunity at MLB immortality. Team first trumps individual accomplishment when team is trying to win NL West and advance in playoffs. If Dodgers were out of the playoff picture then I would be all for Hill continuing to pitch.
I second that motion. I also question how this affects team morale.
OK, guys, let’s look at this scenario:
Rich Hill goes out and does it again in WS game 7. Identical situation (except different opponent). 5-0, going into the 8th, Hill dominating but might have a blister forming. Win or lose it’s the last game of the season.
So what does Doc do? I think he leaves him in. Does anybody honestly believe otherwise?
Definitely leaves Hill in with Kershaw, Jansen, Urias, and Blanton all warming up.
Kinda scenario I had in mind, ‘cept Kersh. His perfect game in 6 got us this far.
Heck, as long as we’re imagining, might as well imagine good!