Every sports fan has a favorite team, a favorite player.  Sports fans love talking about the qualities that make their favorite player the best.  There have been endless debates about who is truly the leader, the sparkplug, the fire that pushes the team to the next level.  And those debates will continue as long as sports are a part of people’s lives.

Kyle Kendrick (Photo Credit: Steve Trapani)

The opposite is also true.  There have been just as many discussions about who is the worst player on a team.  For me, it’s easy.

I will go on record saying I’m not a big fan of a lot of players in the Phillies bullpen, but there is one that makes me cringe every time I see him warming up.  For me, the player I never want to see is Kyle Kendrick.

Kyle Kendrick broke onto the scene in 2007 at the age of 22.  The Phillies were hoping for a right-hand version of Cole Hamels, and, at first, it seemed they got their wish.  He posted a 3.87 ERA, 1.273 WHIP and a 1.96 SO/BB ratio, along with 10 Wins.  Those numbers were good enough for him to finish in 5^th in the Rookie of the Year voting (baseball-reference.com).

Since then, Kendrick has been consistently inconsistent.  He has the ability to throw a gem of a game where he will give up 2 runs or less.  The very next game he will walk 2 batters in a row, then give up a 3-run homerun.
His woes got so bad in 2008 that he was sent down to the minors. he was brought back up for the postseason push, but failed to make the playoff roster.

He entered Spring Training in 2009 with a chance to win the fifth starter spot, but rookie J.A. Happ beat him out for it.  KK was once again headed to AAA.  2010 never got any better.   Jaime Moyer and Happ earned the 4th and 5th spots in the rotation.  But, because of injuries to both Moyer and Joe Blanton, he hung around Philadelphia.

It’s not his record that scares and sends flashes of hopelessness through me.  His record is decent.  Not great, but not bad either. That has to do with the fact that he has one of the best run supports in the majors.  The Phillies offense sees him on the mound and feel like they have to score at least 7 runs in order to win.  (Which they do, since he has a career ERA of 4.61.)

What I truly don’t like is Kendrick’s confidence, or lack there of.  He pitches

"Wait, what am I suppose to do now?" Kyle Kendrick (Photo Credit: Steve Trapani)

scared.  He always seems shocked when he records an out, and confusion seems to set in when there is a runner on base.  Kendrick acts like he has no idea what he is suppose to do with a ball that is put in play.

The only time that Kendrick isn’t scared or confused is when a home run is hit.  And that happens, a lot.  Kendrick seems to enjoy throwing batting practice, except, he does it in the middle of a game.

As a starter, he doesn’t go deep into games, as a reliever, he is a mop-up man.   As a person, I’m sure he’s a great guy.  As a player, well, I wish Ruben Amaro Jr. would find another home for Kendrick.

Photo Courtesy of Steve Trapani:  Check out his Flickr account and follow him on twitter @Trap_33

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