But anyone could do the easier thing. The beauty is in trying to do the more difficult, maybe even irrational thing. Moyer is used to that. His whole major-league career has been in defiance of what was easy or rational. So why would he stop now?
Moyer's quest to add one more season to his long entry in the Baseball Encyclopedia has provided about the only drama in this Phillies' camp. Except for a couple of bullpen spots, the rest of the roster was virtually set before New Year's Day. Kendrick, throwing with more confidence and an expanded repertoire of pitches, has made a strong case for himself in his last few outings.
So Moyer took the mound against the Baltimore Orioles with quite a bit at stake. He had not been especially impressive in a couple of B games. This would mean facing the Orioles' regulars (admittedly, not exactly the Yankees' lineup) at a sold-out Bright House Field.
The results: five innings, five hits, one earned run. Zero walks, six strikeouts.
"This was his first real game," pitching coach Rich Dubee said. "I thought he was Jamie. It's game on when he pitches. Jamie pitches the same whether it's a B game or the first game of the World Series."
Just to get some perspective on the scope of what Moyer is doing, consider that he struck out Matt Wieters, the Orioles catcher, in the second inning. Wieters was born May 21, 1986. So, he was a little under 4 weeks old when Moyer made his major-league debut for the Cubs on June 16 of that year.
Moyer is not just old enough to be these guys' fathers. He's old enough to be a grandfather.
The situation is a sticky one for the Phillies. Dubee has rightly said that Kendrick has to win this competition decisively. It is Moyer's job to lose.
