CWS: In defense of Dallas Buck

By Lindsay Schnell - June 22, 2006

Okay, I know I'm suppposed to be objective and all, but I need to defend Dallas Buck a little.

First off, while I realize he can sometimes come across as having a bit of an attitude, the kid is a competitor. He wants to win. Period.

It's true he's lost some velocity and a lot of people are now saying they think Nickerson is the best pitcher, but in Buck's defense, he's having some injury problems. Evidently, Buck has known for a lot of the season that he's going to have to get Tommy John surgery. For the non-baseball nut, that basically means he's going to get some ligament reconstruction on his arm. Which, as I'm sure you can all imagine, does not sound like any fun.

I'm not sure if Buck is expected to throw any or at all the rest of the series, but I hope everyone realizes he might not have much choice.

By the way, the Beavers are up 1-0 after catcher Mitch Canham hit a sacrifice fly that scored first baseman Bill Rowe.