Lynn Henning

Kelly was the right move in left

A lot of people have been saying to me that Don Kelly shouildn't have been in left field Saturday when he lost an eighth-inning fly ball that turned into the big hit in Minnesota's comeback win over the Tigers.

I don't for a moment believe Kelly was the issue.

The Metrodome was the issue. And it was a visibility situation more than it had anything to do with experience.

The greater percentage risk in the eighth inning of a game the Tigers led, 2-1, was that a ball wouldn't be reached, or a throw wouldn't be made, if Carlos Guillen was in left field.

That made Kelly the best choice for Jim Leyland, the Tigers manager. Kelly has the best glove of anybody on the Tigers bench and one of the best arms.

He had caught a ball in left an inning earlier. He had caught plenty of baseballs during batting practice at the Metrodome.

Losing baseballs against the ridiculous dirty-cloth ceiling is a peril for every outfielder who plays there, no matter how many years of experience he might have.

It depends upon certain times of the day, and certain areas of the ceiling, whether a ball is visible or prone to disappear. And it pulls these tricks on fielders regardless of their experience level.

I would always go with the percentages in these situations. And having Kelly in left, for what should have been an easy play if only he could have seen the ball, was the right way to deploy him.

It wasn't Kelly's fault. It was the Metrodome's. And any team that plays baseball at this lamentable venue runs a constant risk of having happen to them what happened to Kelly and the Tigers on Saturday.