Take It Like A Man

So after making the decision that I'd rather see Babe Ruth in a speedo than see the New York Yankees win the World Series, I started to realize how difficult it would be to stand by the Philadelphia Phillies.  They aren't making it easy to root for them, that's for sure.  First there was the guarantee by Jimmy Rollins that they'd win in five games, "six if their nice," - well Jimbo if you're going to win it has to be in Game 7, so what happened to your cute little prediction?  Ok, that doesn't even matter, I'm over Rollins' arrogance, and now my frustration is purely centered on the Phils' manager, Charlie "I should read a coaching" Manuel.

If you've seen a Charlie Manuel press conference, you probably agree with me when I say that Charlie needs to take it like a man.  Manuel has developed a nice little routine of heading to the podium after a loss and putting on his cranky pants.  He answers every question with a tone of "how dare you ask me something so dumb," and he also defends every decision he makes like it was the right move and it just happened, coincidently, not to work out.  Well, in trailing the Yankees 3-2 in the World Series, there seems to be quite a few coincidences costing the Phillies their season.  I was really expecting the Yankess to lose this Series as a result of Joe Girardi's mismanagement - but what I underestimated was Manuel's incredible ability to mismanage his own team.

Granted, Manuel is riding high now because the Phils won Game 5 behind ace Cliff Lee, but that's not a big surprise, we all expected Lee to win and he did.  And there's a great chance that the Philadelphia takes Game 6 in a Pedro Martinez vs. Andy Pettitte showdown for the ages.  So where did Skipper Chuck go wrong?  Well we could start with Game 2 when he let Pedro go back out to the mound for the 7th inning, but we'll let that Grady Little-esque moment slide.  Lets look at Game 4.  The Phils had just lost Game 3, at home, with their former ace, Cole Hamels on the mound.  So how does Charlie respond in a must-win game?  He sends out his #4 starter, Joe Blanton, on the mound against the Yankees ace, C.C. Sabathia - genius idea Chuck.  In his post-game cranky pants session, Manuel was asked, "Charlie, Cliff Lee said he was willing to pitch tonight, if he had insisted he wanted to pitch, would you have gone with him?"  Manuel's quick and degrading response was, "Nope, absolutely not."  Wow, how insightful; thanks Chuck, great explanation.

In pregame discussions, many said that Manuel wasn't starting Lee because he had never pitched on three days rest before.  Who cares!?  It's not like he's making him drive blindfolded or something; pitching on three days rest isn't dangerous, it's just uncommon because this generation's pitchers are so pampered.  In the current age of pitch counts, 6-inning starts, and 1-inning saves, we forget that pitchers of previous generations threw until the cows came home, and they didn't even have Tommy-John surgery, or all this medical pampering available!  Regardless, starting a short-rested Lee is still better than a well-rested Blanton.  Many will say "well, Blanton didn't pitch that bad."  Ok, true.  But guess what, he didn't pitch that good, and I guarantee that Lee would've pitched better and probably won.

So now let's look at the big picture.  Let's say Pedro out-duels Pettitte tomorrow, who is on the bump for Game 7?  In the Yankee corner, their ace, at home, Sabathia - and in the Phillie corner, choke artist of the '09 playoffs, the guy who can't even win at home and is now on the road, in the hardest postseason building to win at, Hamels.  Perfect.  Lee will only be on two days rest for Game 7, so even if he is available, there are two concerns - 1, Lee will only be able to pitch limited innings whether it's in a start of in relief.  2, if Manuel is willing to use him on two days rest, why didn't he use him on three days rest in Game 4??

Right, I know - if I know so much and I can complain about the problem, what is the solution?  I'll tell you what it is.  Start Lee in Game 4 and win, tying the series at 2-2.  Then, you save Pedro for Game 6 in the Bronx because he can win there, and in Game 5 you give the ball to...Jamie Moyer.  That's right, old man Jamie Moyer.  I say this for multiple reasons - 1, Moyer has been out of the rotation for a while and the Yankees would have to look back to August to find film on him.  2, it's a great change of pace - all these pitchers, Sabathia, Lee, Hamels, Pettitte, Blanton, even an aging Pedro, rely on bringing some low-to-high 90's heat.  Jamie Moyer changes a hitter's entire approach, first he has to roll his wheel chair out to the mound, then he has to use his cane to stand up, and then he throws a nasty 88 mph fastball...on a good day.  In the same way that Tim Wakefield's knuckleball can baffle any lineup, so can Moyer's finesse.  3, by pulling Hamels out of the rotation, you now have someone reliable in your bullpen, and should probably use him as the closer, this way Lidge can't blow any more games.  The postseason makes us forget, but the Phillies had the most unreliable bullpen in baseball in the 2nd half of the season, they could use a change of pace.  4, Moyer has experience...I mean like dang, he is living proof that dinosaurs once roamed the Earth.  He knows what he's doing on the mound, he knows how to control a game, and how to come through in the clutch.  And 5, by starting Lee in Game 4 that makes him available to start and win a potential Game 7, so even if Moyer loses and the Phils go down 3-2 as they are now, the outlook for the next two games is much better.


Doesn't seem so complicated to me, so why not try it?  Oh that's right, Charlie didn't think of it, so he won't do it...because clearly anything that Chuck thinks of has worked perfectly.  Don't get me wrong, managers will always be second-guessed by fans and media, and it's a lot harder to make the call before you know what will happen.  However, it's not so much Manuel's managing that I'm frustrated at, it's his attitude.  Don't you dare go to that podium and make someone feel dumb for asking you a perfectly valid question.  You got paid big money to make the right decision, and you messed up...big time.  So go to that podium, admit your mistakes, and for crying out loud...take it like a man.

Going Down A Short Road

So did you ever take a second to ponder why they call the the leader of a Major League Baseball team a manager, and not just a head coach?  Well, it's because they manage.  They are supposed to manage the game and talent in a way that will produce a favorable outcome for their team.  Without a good manager, good talent is easily wasted, and with a great manager, sub-par talent is sometimes well utilized to an extent that produces unexpected results.  Why don't other sports have managers?  In football you have a head coach, but then you also have coordinators for offense, defense, special teams, quarterbacks, linebackers, etc.  In basketball you have a head coach and he or she designs plays, coordinates substitutions, and calls timeouts; but the execution of the game is in the hands of the players.  In hockey, it's a similar situation to basketball - line changes, play calling, and timeouts are all coaching responsibilities, but execution resides with the players.  Looking back to baseball, you have many coaches, but one manager.  The manager sets a lineup and pitching rotation that change daily based on matchups, he can stop the game at anytime he wants to adjust the circumstances of the game, and every decision he makes does not just effect one game, but potentially the next four...especially in the playoffs.  Ultimately baseball players have the power to execute a play, but a manager has the power to execute a game, season, or championship run.   The bottom line is that a big league manager makes or breaks a team's season.

Okay, okay, so what's the point?  The point is that Joe Girardi is on the verge of managing the New York Yankees into the end of their season...and not they way that Yankees fans expect it to end.  In my playoff predictions, I got virtually every single thing wrong, but now Girardi is giving me a chance to be right about one thing - his poor managing will be the demise of they Yankees Championship run.  How so?  He is starting A.J. Burnett tonight, and leaving one of the most successful postseason starters in history, Andy Pettitte, on the bench.

It doesn't matter that Pettitte is on 3-days rest, this is what he came to the Yankees for, to pitch big games in the playoffs.  I don't care what Burnett's numbers are at home this year, or how he has better "stuff" then Pettitte.  Pettitte is not a great postseason pitcher because of the amount of wins he has, rather it is because of the type of wins that he has - HUGE wins, wins that bail the Yankees out of a tight spot.  He is notorious for winning after a Yankees loss in the playoffs.  The last time the Yanks were in the Series [2003] they lost Game 1 of the ALDS, ALCS, and the World Series.  Andy Pettitte started, and won Game 2 in all three series.

Okay, there's the backround - fast-forward to present day, Thursday, October 29th.  The Yanks are down 1-0 to the Phillies, after C.C. Sabathia, their high-priced ace came up short in Game 1.  They are going with Burnett because that was the "plan" and he has good numbers at home, but who cares!?  He's going against Pedro, in danger of heading to Philly down 2-0!  I'm sorry A.J. but your very thin playoff resume does not give you much of a chance in such a big game.

Now let's get back to the concept of managing.  Starting Burnett tonight will be felt in more than just one game.  Lets say the Yankees lose tonight, head to Philly down 2-0, win Game 3 behind Pettitte, and C.C. gets bested by Cliff Lee again in Game 4.  Now in a season deciding game on the road, Joe Girardi will have to put the Yankees season in the hands of Burnett, unless Chad Gaudin will get the ball (yea right).  Now let's look at it the smart way, the Yankees win Game 2 behind Pettitte, then Burnett has a better chance against a struggling Hamels in Game 3 and the Yankees could be up 2-1.  Or even if Burnett loses on the road, like everyone is afraid of, and C.C. loses Game 4, putting the Yanks down 3-1, guess who can save the Yanks in Game 5 and bring the Series back to the Bronx - Andy. Freaking. Pettitte.  Really, this isn't rocket science, but Girardi can't seem to put the pieces together.  As a manager, you need to set yourself up so that in the event your back is against the wall, you can put your best team on the field.  And let's face it, the Yankees best team isn't on the field unless #46 is on the mound with his hat pulled down over his head, and his glove covering his face.  

Now, baseball is a game of crazy occurrences, and Burnett could very well win tonight.  But I'll be honest, in my humble opinion, that with Pedro pitching in the Bronx and the Phillies craving a 2-0 lead...he won't.