Streak's big buzz hasn't bit Webb Dan Bickley
The Arizona Republic
Aug. 22, 2007 12:00 AM
A buzz will move through the Valley today. All the clichés about gathering around the water cooler will come to life.
It's one of those rare moments when the anticipation of a regular-season baseball game has a region giddy with anticipation.
Normally, this happens only when the Yankees cross the Massachusetts state line.
"Good Lord," said Diamondbacks starter Brandon Webb, watching a gaggle of reporters disperse from his locker Tuesday. "Imagine if I break this thing."
There is a wonderful paradox here, folks. Most players in Webb's position would be destined for a day of nervous isolation. He has thrown 42 consecutive scoreless innings and, in times like this, the unwritten rules of baseball are rife with superstition - so much that it's taboo to even look at a pitcher on the verge of history.
That's not the case with Webb, who is shirking the general quirkiness shown by pitchers in moments such as this. To wit:
This morning, he might pick up his vehicle at the shop. Or maybe not. He's pretty sure he'll whittle away the afternoon playing his guitar but, incredibly, no schedule must be heeded. And having long ago abandoned his customary game-day pancakes at IHOP, he might not even eat breakfast.
"One time during the streak I didn't get a chance to eat, and I went out there and dealt," Webb said. "So I know that I don't have to eat a certain way before I pitch."
Webb is so different this way that Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin said you could actually inform the team's ace that he has a no-hitter in progress, which simply is unheard of in this sport. Just don't try it with Randy Johnson.
"I would never say that to (Webb)," Melvin said. "But I'm more superstitious than he is."
Ah, but Webb is just a simple guy with a magical pitch, a sinker that seems to disappear from view at the most opportune time. Both traits give him a solid chance to break the mark set by Orel Hershiser in 1988, and if he holds the Brewers without a run tonight, his next start takes place in San Diego, in the pitcher's paradise known as Petco Park.
Coincidentally, San Diego is where Hershiser set his mark in 1988, and just imagine if two hallowed baseball records (including Barry Bonds' homer mark) fall in the same summer.
"(Webb's streak) is one of the most impressive things I've seen on a baseball field, probably the most impressive," Diamondbacks outfielder Eric Byrnes said.
Yet while Webb keeps his poise firmly intact, his team squirms behind him. Byrnes said that it has become "nerve-racking" playing defense behind Webb for fear of committing that blunder that leads to a run.
Melvin said he has begun to manage differently with Webb on the mound and, if necessary, he'll bring in the infield for the sake of preventing a run and preserving an individual's pursuit of history.
You would think that the home-plate umpire would be a little more generous with his strike zone, not wanting the opposing team to walk its way to a run. And in the other clubhouse, the Brewers will be especially motivated to cross home plate.
"Forty-two is a big number, especially with all the variables involved," Brewers catcher Damian Miller said. "But we'd be amped up, anyway, just because of who he is. I mean, that's a Cy Young winner."
Whatever happens, there surely will be great excitement at Chase Field tonight, and the buzz will be present from the opening pitch. From the moment fans knew Webb's next assignment, ticket sales spiked from 23,000 to 28,000, and a huge walk-up crowd is expected tonight.
This is exactly the kind of buzz that team officials have been waiting for all season long, but if you look closely, this is bigger than one man's quest for history.
This is the familiar tale of a pitcher putting a team on his back at a crucial stage of the season. It's why Webb now is a Cy Young frontrunner, with Jake Peavy and Brad Penny. And it's the kind of development that raises the ceiling for everyone wearing Sedona red.
After all, the Cardinals won a title with 83 victories last year, and these days, one really dominant pitcher can take a decent team all the way to the World . . .
Never mind. No need to jinx anyone just yet.