Is It Too Much To Ask For a Complete Game Once In A While?

I hate pitch counts.

Nothing bugs me more than when I'm watching a game and things are going well, and out walks the manager to yank their starter because he's up to or over 100 pitches.

Is it sad when fans get excited that their team's starter throws a complete game these days? The answer to that is yes.

Whatever happened to endurance?

So far in 2011, of the 30 Major League teams, there have been just five complete games thrown out of 290 games played. 

Five games.

This season, Mets starting pitching is averaging just 5.1 innings per game. They are also averaging close to 93 pitches per game.

Granted for a few of those starts, the pitcher was taken out early, not because of the pitch count, but because he was just plain awful (I'm looking at you Mike Pelfrey).

Is it so much to ask that the starters go, at the very least, seven innings? 

As Jon Presser points out over at The Shea Faithful, the Mets bullpen is averaging 3.8 innings a game.

Hmm...That almost sounds abusive.

You know how teams, particularly the Mets, can cut down on the daily bullpen meltdowns? Starters need to start going deeper into games. Save yourself, and the fans, the agony and do the work yourself.