Comments on: These Are Not Game-Winning Plays

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 20 May 2009 01:30:14 +0000

I definitely agree about the first base situation, especially after last night. No one looks comfortable there right now, Delgado is out for at least two months, and Minaya said they're not going to make any immediate moves to acquire someone new. So it really does seem like Manuel should park someone there for a while and let them get used to it.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:35:26 +0000

Can't anybody here play this game?

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:06:34 +0000

It's not about Pagan, I like Pagan. Murphy just shouldn't sit for ..5 games now? He's putting those players out of position. Sheffield's game tying hit was luck. Certainly not a cleanup hitter, presence in the lineup drive. Sheff has had a lot of AB now, and he's batting like .240 with 2HR. Murphy is doing better than that. Church..could be. who knows, he's been played so sporadically since he started slumping, that I don't know how he's supposed to break out of it.
Tatis has been bad at first. He was slumping bad. He was 2/25 against Wolf. What possible reason did Manuel have to start him? Was he serious that Murphy might play first? put him there. Is reed going to get time at first? put him there. he had more hits yesterday than Tatis, and made just as many bad throws to home. Maybe he doesn't make that if he'd been playing all game.
you're generally not supposed to play for the tie on the road. Don't bunt with Castillo in the 8th. Especially considering he has good numbers against Wolf.
I'd like to hear more about Reyes injury. Is Manuel just being extra cautious? He's shown signs before of not wanting guys to play if they're is a hint they hurt a little bit. With players collapsing around him, it might've been the time to ignore the _Dodgers_ team doctor and get Reyes in there.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 19 May 2009 16:55:11 +0000

Pagan got four hits, including a 2 out triple that should have driven home the go ahead run in extra innings. Sheffield was responsible for the RBI that tied the game in the 8th. I'm a huge fan of Murphy's, too, and I'd like to see him get more playing time, but I don't understand how you can use this game, especially in retrospect, to argue that Manuel is bad at organizing a lineup. I'm just saying he's doing the best with what he has to work with right now. He's working through some tough luck injuries and a bunch of guys playing out of position.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 19 May 2009 16:40:05 +0000

No way is he doing the best he can. Sure, Pagan got hits. but he made a key blunder by not yielding to Beltran. Murphy hits lefties. Murphy should be starting. Make him the everyday 1B if you're serious. You shouldn't platoon a position with people that are learning it. The more chances they get there, the better they'll be. so pick one guy, and make him the starter so he's less likely to fail. Bringing in a cold Reed who had no idea what to do into the game that late was a disaster.
Sheffield only has a high OBP because people haven't realized he can't hit it out anymore and he still has good pitch recognition. He's got 2 home runs, which isn't exactly 'power'. He seems to be mostly a singles hitter, and Castillo often gets harder hits than he does.
Manuel is too lefty/righty matchup happy, often without even looking at the numbers. Tatis was 2/25, now 2/28 against Wolf.
Yes, the team is winning. I'm happy with this team except for the fundamentals that Manuel has already said he's not going to bother with until they get back home. But when you have such a disaster as we haven't seen in 15 years managing this team, better to get rid of him before it's too late.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 19 May 2009 16:32:42 +0000

I thought he played Pagan and Sheffield last night because Wolf is left handed. It paid off in spades in Pagan's case, and Sheffield did get a hit.
Murphy will probably get a shot to play first base soon, although I'm starting to think Tatis is the best of a bunch of difficult options there. It's really unfair to start pointing the finger at Manuel here, though. The team is 12-4 in May, and the fans never even really stopped griping about them during that 7 game winning streak.
Regarding Delgado, every first basemen the team has in Buffalo has been playing abysmally so far this season. Nick Evans was supposed to be the team's backup first baseman, but he's hitting, like, .070 and just got sent down to AA. And to have to fly Martinez out yesterday to play backup for the backup shortstop? I mean, Manuel's in a really tough spot right now. But despite all of that, they still played a good game against the Dodgers last night before things flew apart in extra innings. And, as “unspectacular” as the Dodgers may have looked last night, they still have the best record in the game right now. Manny or no Manny, they're not an easy team to beat. I just can't find it in me to start griping at Manuel about lineup decisions right now. He's doing the best he can, and meanwhile, the team is 3-2 without Reyes or Delgado.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 19 May 2009 16:03:01 +0000

Not a baseball “insider” but Manuel appears not to be the strategist I thought he was. No reason why players like Church amd Murphy should be kept in the doghouse and not just benched for a game or two during a prolonged slump.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 19 May 2009 15:54:15 +0000

I know you can't excuse the players for all the shoddy play, but I'm absolutely sick of Manuel setting up his players to lose. I almost didn't want to watch last night when I saw the disaster he'd made of the lineup. And does Sheffield's clutch presence to shoot a dribbler slower than Castro can run through the huge hole to the right side earn him the right to play the next 5 games over Murphy?
Church didn't look comfortable coming into the game off the bench. It's almost like he's used to starting, and not used to being ready to play off the bench.
Reed flat out said he's never practiced that. Not as an excuse, just as a fact. He threw that ball like it was a fly out to LF and he was trying to catch the runner tagging. Big surprise there, as he has OF instincts and had only been at 1B for an inning. Stokes running in front of him couldn't have helped.
ugh. It was hard to fall asleep after that last night.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 19 May 2009 14:26:33 +0000

HI Greg,
Surprised you didn't compare Lindsey Nelson's call on the Marvelous Marv play to the play-by-play from last night. It sounded so similar as Howie (or was it Wayne) was so excited about the run scoring play and then was caught completely off guard with the appeal play.
BTW – because Marv was the batter, at least the runners scored on what eventually became a put-out at first.