The walk that wasn't

[Astro Annie]

...or why isn't anyone talking about it. Is it because no one knows?

http://www.brokersys.com/~j-mag/ezb/TheWalkThatWasnt.mpg

is video of Palmeiro's PH AB on Thursday wherein the count goes 4-2 on him but he doesn't get the walk. (warning, it's 30 megs so it takes awhile to download) He fouls off some pitches and then pops out. No one in the media is talking about this. But Jimy or someone in the 'Stros dugout should have been aware enough of what's going on in the game to call attention to it, but no one did.

Yet another reason to kick Jimy's ass out the door.


edited to move the video onto my server to help keep the bandwidth usage down on Astrosdaily.

[Toy Cannon]

That's incredible. I had already gone to bed and was unaware of this. Didn't read about it, hear or see anything later. How could NO ONE have noticed?

[PopTop]

Annie, I missed Thursday's game entirely, hadn't read anything about it either. However, I have two words for you: Bruce Froemming. :hmm: The fact its his crew that mucked something like this up does NOT surprise me int he least.

[Toy Cannon]

Astros outfielder Orlando Palmeiro said he had only himself to blame for losing track of the count while pinch-hitting in the eighth inning of Thursday's 7-2 loss to the Dodgers.

Palmeiro drew ball four and should have taken his base against Dodgers reliever Darren Dreifort, but only after popping up on the next pitch for the first out of the inning and later reviewing the pitch sequence on a television monitor in the Astros clubhouse did he realize he should have walked.

Palmeiro said he went to the plate expecting Dreifort to throw a strike with his first deliver. The pitch was out of the strike zone, however.

"In my mind, I had erased the first pitch," Palmeiro said. "We're losing, and I'm going to work the count. I was expecting a strike on the first pitch. I figured he'd lay it in there. Even if the count goes 0-1, then 0-2 and I make an out, at least I made him work for it, right? It should never happen. Obviously, the buck has to stop here. It's my fault."

[barzilla]

It just proves me how little priority Palmeiro puts on drawing walks. Here is a guy that has not produced high OBPs throughout his own career. As a pinch hitter his primary responsibility is to get on base, not hit.