Starter or sub, Caps’ Morales will play against Kansas City
Pedro Morales will hit the pitch at B.C. Place on Wednesday night against Kansas City.
But whether those minutes come in a starting role or off the substitutes bench is still to be determined, because head coach Carl Robinson isn’t saying.
“He’s raring to go,” Robinson said this week. “He’s looking sharp. He’s looking good. Hopefully that will transfer (into the game).” There’s logic to both approaches. On one hand, Robinson might want to ease his captain and best playmaker back into the lineup after missing three games with a hip strain.
On the other hand, the Caps (3-4-1) have a road game against New York City FC on Saturday, and starting the oft-injured Morales after a coast-to-coast flight might be seen as an unnecessary risk.
Starting him in two games in four days coming off an injury makes no sense, so there is a decision to make.
What’s undeniable is the impact the 30-year-old has when he starts. Since he arrived in 2014, the Caps are 22-13-13 when Morales starts and 9-12-7 when he doesn’t.
Rather than a debate over his ability or importance to the Caps’ cause, the looming question is one of health. Can Morales stay injuryfree? For that matter, can the Caps’ medical staff keep him injury-free?
Morales’s physical breakdown from June onward last season was a source of considerable discussion inside the organization, and Morales came back to Vancouver for extra work two weeks before preseason began.
He’s also been given extra days off practice to instead do preventive work in the gym.
Robinson wouldn’t say what his plan is for New York this weekend, but don’t be surprised if Morales skips a few East Coast games with the bigger picture in mind.
“It’s important I look after Pedro because past history suggests we’ve got to look after him and be careful with him,” said Robinson, who re-signed Morales to a multi-year extension last August.
The concern is understandable — the season’s only just begun and Morales has already missed time in the pre-season with a calf strain, and now three-plus games with a hip strain.