Eric Chavez, doing color commentary on the Oakland game today, called them out for their lack of hustle. They have three errors in this game, and it’s only the 5th inning, and they’re trailing right now, have the worst record in baseball, and have an error in something like 13 consecutive games. So it’s not just the horrendous bullpen, it’s on the entire team.
Time for Billy Beane to move on? Time for Bob Melvin to move on?
I thought the plan was for the whole team to move on to San Jose.
And the Marlins fire Redmond, less than an hour after a ninth-inning, two out hit avoids the no-no. If only Marlins fans could fire Loria…
Nats are on fire, especially Harper. Harp leads the NL in home runs (14), runs (36), RBI (37), walks (36) and on-base-plus-slugging percentage (1.206).
And he’s still only 22 years old. Life is just not fair, is it?
And the GM, Dan Jennings, takes over. Jennings went from scout to VP of personnel to GM. He apparently has no MLB coaching experience. Strange move, indeed. Makes you wonder what’s going on down there.
I feel like I’m watching something special right now with the Nats. If Rendon every gets back, it’ll be insane. I’m going tomorrow to see them play the other NYC team, apparently NY has an AL team. Who knew?
We’re going to see them play the Phillies Friday. Too bad the game with the NY American League club is during the week; my 17 year old is a NY native.
I’m fascinated by the move, and really curious to see what sort of coach a non-player can be in today’s game.
Toronto had Carlos Tosca managed the team in 2003 and 2004. They played better than many expected in 2003, but in 2004 everyone gor injured and they fired him.
Tosca had been a coach for years, actually, but he never played pro ball. That fact, apparently, was a HUGE deal to his players, and bubbled up big time the moment the team faced some adversity.
Logically it should matter very little. You really do not need to be an ex-player to know how to assemble a lineup. I don’t think it takes a huge genius to conclude that Mike Trout should probably play every day and hit near the top of the lineup, or that Felix Hernandez can safety be deployed out there every fifth start. In terms of the physical coaching details, that is why you have pitching, hitting, bullpen and base coaches of all sorts.
But leadership’s also emotional, and to pro athletes the knowledge that a guy faced the same struggles they do is a really big deal. Even if the guy was a minor league scrub, that’s fine; after all, it’s the fringe players and the scrubs and the maybe-they’ll-make-it prospects who need most of the finessing, if you will, so a manager who’s been there can relate. It’s going to be very hard for Jennings to sit down with a guy who’s being sent to the minors to work out a flaw in his swing and say “I know how you feel” because he doesn’t know, and you can rest well assured the player will know damn well he doesn’t and it will probably have been mentioned a LOT in the clubhouse.
So Jennings can convince himself all he wants that he knows how to fill out a lineup card, manage a bullpen, and know when to bunt, and you know what? I bet he can. But shit, I know that stuff too. Come on, it’s really not rocket science, and most teams are tactically managed pretty much the same way. I could run an MLB club, tactically speaking, about as well as most managers. So could a lot of people in this thread. The fact remains, though, that I would not have a one in a trillion shot of succeeding because I would not be capable of managing the personnel. I just don’t know how to do that because I have spent no time in a professional baseball clubhouse, learning the political and personal idiosynchratic details of it. Nobody involved would respect me and the team would dissolve into infighting and argument.
ill be there Friday, section 132. We were there tonight, too and saw Zimmhit a walk off HR in the tenth. I’m still amped from the game.
Ventura goes seven innings for the Royals, doesn’t hit anyone with fist or ball or cause a fight, strikes out six, and gets the win.
Kind of boring.
The Cardinals have had a few long games recently, including a 14-inning game Monday evening. So, Tuesday, when they were up 10-2 over the Mets in the 9th and the pitcher’s spot came up in the rotation, they let relief pitcher Randy Choate bat. It was his first at bat since 2004. He didn’t have a bat, or a batting helmet, or batting gloves. He walked - his first time on base in his 15-year career.
For some fans, that was probably the highlight of the game.
Did anyone watch the Reds/Royals game last night? I’m a die-hard Cubs fan, but since WGN isn’t airing the games, I have to watch Cincinnati if I want to watch a game.
Anyway, during last night’s game, they were discussing closers. And I know that Thom Brenneman and company are supposed to play up their players, to the point of being a “homer.” But they actually said, about Aroldis Chapman, “he is the most dominant closer in the game today. Maybe the most dominant closer in the history of baseball.”
I’m not dismissing Chapman and his ability. But to suggest that he’s more dominant than Mariano Rivera borders on insanity.
coughRollie Fingerscough
Also a valid selection. But Chapman isn’t more than dominant than either of those 2
Wait, what? I am quite certain that when he arrived in the batter’s box he was wearing a helmet and holding a bat.
Well, “dominant” is a subjective term. I always kind of interpreted “Dominant” as meaning, in some contexts, a pitcher who strikes out many men and gives up very few hits, but might also walk many men - in other words, a pitcher who personally determines the outcome of the contest. Greg Maddux was a much greater pitcher than Nolan Ryan, but Ryan was more dominant, if you see what I mean.
Oh, yes. Sorry to be unclear. He had to borrow them - didn’t have his own.