Yankees 6, Braves 4
New York Yankees vs. Atlanta Braves – Box Score – June 12, 2012 – ESPN.
Well, Mike Minor outpitched CC Sabathia, and the Braves led most of the way, but a bullpen collapse in the eighth inning handed the game to the Yankees. The Braves simply don’t have the Jonny Venters of the last two years anymore.
With the bases loaded and one out in the first, Matt Diaz, starting in right field against the lefty, hit a bases-clearing double, scoring Michael Bourn, Brian McCann, and Dan Uggla. For a long time, it seemed that this would hold up, as Minor, after a little first-inning trouble, kept the Yankees in check for seven innings. In the bottom of the seventh, Jason Heyward‘s bases-loaded groundout scored Martin Prado to make it 4-0. It turned out to be a key play, as the Braves’ inability to get more than one run out of that situation kept the Yankees in it.
In the eighth, Minor got the first man, then allowed a single to Derek Jeter. It came on his 100th pitch of the game, and Fredi came and got him, going with Venters. Jonny had nothing. A single was followed by a walk to load the bases, then Alex Rodriguez tied the game with a grand slam. After allowing another hit, Venters was finally pulled, only for Cory Gearrin to allow a two-run homer to Nick Swisher to give the Yankees the lead. Gearrin hit Andruw Jones with a pitch but eventually got two outs. The Braves got one baserunner, on an Andrelton Simmons walk, in the eighth, but that was it.
A small note about tack-on runs: An Uggla baserunning blunder probably cost the Braves another run.
In the 3rd inning, Uggla hit a one-out double, but was cut down when he tried to advance to third on a Diaz grounder to Jeter. Chipper followed with a single.
June 13th, 2012 at 10:00 amI guess I’m in the minority here. I really see nothing to call Fredi to the mat on for yesterday’s game. Venters is your guy and though he’s not performed this year like he has in the past two years, you trust him to do his job. Could you have done some things differently? Sure, but it’s easy to take a bad result and say a different choice would’ve yielded better results. Venters faced 4 batters and got none of them out so the blame lies with the player if you ask me.
June 13th, 2012 at 10:19 am#2 – Sure, I agree. However, the Yanks shouldve never had a look at Venters the day before.
June 13th, 2012 at 10:20 amIt’s not an either/or proposition. Venters needs to get his act together. And Fredi shouldn’t have let him pitch to A-Rod. That’s what Kimbrel is obviously here to do: to make even their badass hitters strike out. He should’ve been told to warm up with two on.
June 13th, 2012 at 10:30 amKimbrel shouldve been warming up as soon as Venters came into the game. Not really sure why two guys arent ready that late in the game.
June 13th, 2012 at 10:33 amIt’s not an either/or proposition.
A-freaking-men. Once again, no one is excusing Venters’ crappy performance. But player failure is a part of the game, and the manager’s job is to manage that failure to the least possible detriment to the team. Leaving Venters in to face A-Rod was just indefensible strategy.
June 13th, 2012 at 11:01 amExactly.
June 13th, 2012 at 11:13 amThe Venters-to-ARod decision was bad, but the real travesty was Gearrin-to-Swisher. Gearrin SUCKS against lefties, and Swisher has been much better as a lefty. No EOF makes things tougher, but the Lisp is really good against lefties with his nasty changeup.
June 13th, 2012 at 11:22 amI fault Fredi for a few things in that inning. Number one, if you have that short of a leash on Minor, take him out before the inning and let Venters start fresh. That may sound small, but I hate this idea of sticking with a starter until he gives up a baserunner. If you are sticking with Minor to open the inning, don’t let one baserunner with one out change your mind. I can see going with Venters, but if someone has struggled as much as Venters has, shouldn’t he be the one with the short leash? In addition, this is why you don’t use Durbin the past two games in losing efforts. Finally, you go with Gearrin, who threw 32 pitches over 2 innings and sucked last year when called to pitch on consecutive days. To be fair, he sucked in general, but seemed to suck even more when you used with no rest. At no time did it ever seemed entertained to go with Kimbrel.
Hindsight’s 20/20 and all that cliched stuff, but I don’t think you needed hindsight to make better calls. I was waiting for Swisher to homer.
June 13th, 2012 at 11:49 amGearrin is a ROOGY, much like Moylan. He’ll struggle in the bigs until a manager uses him properly.
June 13th, 2012 at 11:52 amKimbrel should’ve been warming up as soon as Venters allowed the single. Then he should have been brought in after Venters was no where close to throwing strikes to the next hitter. He’s our best player, and not using him in last night’s game is just bizarre.
Gearrin vs Swisher was also bad, but at the time I was assuming EOF was available. Any other righty that’s not named Kimbrel vs Swisher seems equally bad to me as well.
June 13th, 2012 at 11:57 amYou cannot allow a struggling lefty to pitch to A-Rod in that situation. I think Fredi is like a lot of managers in that he feels he has to show confidence in guys that have performed well in previous years. But when the guy has nothing, that has to take a back seat to winning. But, it’s also his mindset that you have to have fixed roles so that the closer can NEVER come in before the 9th. I’ve defended Fredi to an extent, but that was inexcusable. It was in line (although obviously not as important a situation)with Grady Little leaving Pedro Martinez in too long against the Yankees in the ALCS. At some point, you can’t put your head in a box and pretend that this is 2011; Venters is struggling and Fredi apparently thinks if he ignores this he will stop struggling. I actually think this is the one move for which he deserves to be fired.
Obviously, Venters is to blame in terms of how he pitched. But he didn’t hold a gun to Fredi’s head to put him in there or let him pitch to A-Rod with the bases loaded. And if Fredi is concerned about Venters’ confidence, this is only going to make things worse.
June 13th, 2012 at 12:17 pmThis is the killer line from Fredi:
“We’ve still got to get a couple outs there and then hand the ball over to Kimbrel and it just didn’t happen.””
Why can’t you put him in with one out in the 8th? Is it a federal offense to use the closer before the 9th?
June 13th, 2012 at 12:20 pmThe closer’s job is to shut down the opponent’s offense and secure the win. When he does this is irrelevant. Perhaps Fredi is too “concrete” in his thinking?
June 13th, 2012 at 12:23 pm[i]“We’ve still got to get a couple outs there and then hand the ball over to Kimbrel and it just didn’t happen.”[/i]
Or Kimbrel could’ve gotten a couple of outs there and then handed the ball to Durbin/List/Livan/whoever. Tying run at the plate, 8th inning is way more important than up 4 runs with nobody on base in the 9th. We know this. Fredi knows this too, but Fredi gonna be Fredi.
June 13th, 2012 at 12:41 pmI don’t like the decision to let Venters pitch to Alex Rodriguez, because he has struggled this year and given up far more homers than he’s used to.
But I absolutely don’t object to the quick hook for Minor. Minor could not have gone any longer. And I don’t object to using our non-terrible relievers in a three-run game. I don’t want Fredi throwing up the white flag in a still-winnable game. The problem with our 3-0 loss was our offense throwing up a stinkbomb against Ivan Nova. The problem with this loss was our bullpen throwing up a stinkbomb. I don’t blame Fredi for the offense; I just blame him for not having a quicker hook for Venters.
As I’ve said earlier, I absolutely hate Gearrin and I don’t want to see him in the majors any more unless he can throw strikes. Fine, he’s probably a ROOGY, but he also collapses with runners on base, can’t be used on back-to-back days, and he’s a sinkerballer who somehow gave up a homer yesterday. He’s basically our new Joey Devine or Macay McBride: a guy with good stuff and good minor league numbers who doesn’t appear to have the confidence to throw strikes in an Atlanta Braves uniform.
June 13th, 2012 at 12:43 pmI think there must be a law that Kimbrel cna only pitch in the ninth inning.
The fact that EOF was unable to go yesterday is all the more reason that Kimbrel should have been in the game. He hasn’t pitched in a few days. We have an off day Thursday to boot. It isn’t going to hurt to let him pitch two innings.
If Kimbrel came in and gave up 15 runs, it would have been better. When the game is on the line late in the game, you have to use your stud and let the chips fall.
It would be like having LeBron James and not putting him in w/ 4 minuets to go in favor of Juwan Howard.
June 13th, 2012 at 1:50 pmWell, looks like Washington is finishing off their sweep of both Boston and Toronto.
June 13th, 2012 at 2:04 pmThere’s a chance that we’ll see Kimbrel used in a non-save situation tonight just so he can get some work in, since we have an off-day tomorrow and he hasn’t pitched in a while. That will definitely create some lolz.
June 13th, 2012 at 2:37 pmLeBron James plays 40 minutes a game. He’s Walter Johnson, not Craig Kimbrel.
Maybe a better sports analogy might be using Bam Morris instead of Marshall Faulk.
June 13th, 2012 at 2:47 pmI checked out Moylan’s splits to confirm what I had remembered. After 2009, Bobby Cox stopped asking Peter Moylan to pitch to lefties. Judging by Moylan’s 2011 stats, Fredi at least remembered how to handle Moylan.
But if everyone agrees that Gearrin is basically a homeless man’s Moylan, why is he handled completely differently? Both of their stats lead to the exact same conclusion: unless you can pitch around a left-handed hitter, neither guy should ever be pitching to one with the game on the line.
June 13th, 2012 at 2:48 pmAccording to Carroll and DOB, the Braves must be considering putting Medlen back in the bullpen.
June 13th, 2012 at 3:04 pmAtlanta Braves @Braves
June 13th, 2012 at 4:06 pmRHP Cory Gearrin has been optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett and RHP Anthony Varvaro has been recalled from Gwinnett.
Bourn
June 13th, 2012 at 4:07 pmPrado
Bmac
Uggla
Jones
Heyward
Hinske
Simmons
Hudson
It’s all Gearrin’s fault, apparently.
June 13th, 2012 at 4:09 pmDoes Fredi have any options left?
June 13th, 2012 at 4:10 pmIn case nobody has noticed, the Braves aren’t getting much from first base right now, neither Freeman nor Hinske are hitting.
June 13th, 2012 at 4:10 pmCory Gearrin can’t go on back to back days. That’s why he’s never going to be a reliever at the ML level. All of the great stats at AAA won’t change that.
I’ll take this opportunity to bid you kids adieu for a while. I don’t see much point in fighting and the kneejerk hatred of literally everything Fredi Gonzalez does is giving me angina. Enjoy yourselves.
June 13th, 2012 at 4:11 pmSam, he pitched 2 innings the day before. Not many relievers even try going on back to back days.
June 13th, 2012 at 4:16 pmBryce Harper said something funny:
http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/8047918/washington-nationals-bryce-harper-clown-question-retort-takes-off
June 13th, 2012 at 4:16 pm!
I am totally taking the credit for this.
June 13th, 2012 at 4:16 pmI’ll kinda miss Sam.
June 13th, 2012 at 4:16 pmBye, Sam. I defended two of Fredi’s decisions in my comment. Glad to see that you’re as nuanced as ever.
June 13th, 2012 at 4:24 pmIt sure would be nice if Hoover was still around. Good trade, that one.
June 13th, 2012 at 4:37 pmLooking forward to seeing Andrelton play behind Hudson tonight.
June 13th, 2012 at 5:05 pmIt’s a good thing that Jordan Schafer isn’t still around. Good trade, that one.
June 13th, 2012 at 5:22 pmAh yes, I see: my dissatisfaction with one trade means I dislike all of Frank Wren’s trades. Glad to see that you’re as nuanced as ever, Alex.
June 13th, 2012 at 5:37 pmHah! Touche.
But you didn’t complain that absolutely everyone on here liked all of Frank Wren’s trades. You simply ironically complained about one, and I ironically appropriated the form of your complaint to imply my satisfaction with a different trade.
June 13th, 2012 at 5:50 pmAw, did poow whittle Sam take his baw and go home? Boo hoo.
June 13th, 2012 at 5:51 pmAlso: screw the Yankees.
June 13th, 2012 at 5:52 pmHuddy has his work cut out for him tonight. I don’t like this matchup of super-patient guys (with power) against a guy that now mostly relies on guile and nibbling on the fringe of the zone. He’s our stopper though, and we need him bigtime tonight to somehow salvage a game in this series and wash away the past few bad losses.
June 13th, 2012 at 6:01 pmNervous about Huddy and his bone spurs. Oh well, go get ‘em Braves!
June 13th, 2012 at 6:12 pmDamn Yankees.
June 13th, 2012 at 6:12 pmWell, I’m glad I’m not listening to the audio. Was there a Chipgasm?
June 13th, 2012 at 6:14 pmChip is a critical blow.
June 13th, 2012 at 6:14 pmBet the Nationals wouldn’t bend over for the Yankees…
June 13th, 2012 at 6:17 pmGet some runs, team.
June 13th, 2012 at 6:24 pmI swear, I want to punch half of the Yankees in the face when I see them on the TV. What a contingency of jerk-offs.
June 13th, 2012 at 6:32 pmThe Braves will score tonight. The Braves will score tonight.
June 13th, 2012 at 6:32 pmNice.
June 13th, 2012 at 6:39 pmAndrelton is such a badass.
June 13th, 2012 at 6:50 pmIs Simpson actually getting on Simmons for getting on base?
June 13th, 2012 at 6:52 pmGood thing we have Chip around to stump for the Yankees’ pitchers.
What a tool. I hope he falls out of the press box one day. Soon.
June 13th, 2012 at 6:53 pmI hope Chip has a very long, happy, and productive life, far away from a microphone.
June 13th, 2012 at 6:54 pmCome on, rain out.
June 13th, 2012 at 6:54 pmWonder what happened there on the bunt by Simmons? It sorta looked like the safety squeeze was on. He was looking over at Jason like wtf? Oh well. Joe Simpson was right to criticize him if he did that on his own.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:00 pmReally? I have no problem in Simmons bunting for a hit. He caught the defense napping.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:01 pmThe defense was napping because the bunt was stupid. One out with runner at 3rd…pitcher due up next…get the run in and tie the game.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:03 pmNice inning, Huddy.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:05 pmPrado home run time.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:08 pmTerrible at bat, Bmac.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:12 pmThat was an “I am not healthy” swing by Chipper on that 94-mile-an-hour, low and inside fastball.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:17 pmRunner on second, no outs, 3, 4 and 5 hitters: you’d think we might squeeze out a run.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:18 pmRBI is the stat of the night in the Braves booth.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:23 pmThere you go, Jason.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:33 pmSometimes it appears as if the Braves could be spotted a runner on third to start all nine innings, and at the end of the game they’d lose 6-5.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:35 pmIs Andrelton aware that he is not, under any circumstances, permitted to get hurt?
June 13th, 2012 at 7:38 pmNice at-bat by Simmons.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:43 pmThat strike two call to Bourn was bull.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:46 pmFirst two looked close but off the plate. Ump’s got a sliding strike zone.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:46 pmWhew. We almost scored a run there, and we can’t do that unless Derek Jeter and the Yankees say it’s okay.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:47 pmThe offense remains offensive. It feels like it now takes 4 hits in an inning to even think about scoring a run.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:49 pmHudson has pitched well. Sure would be nice to score a few runs.
June 13th, 2012 at 7:59 pmTime for a big hit.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:04 pmHow does Chip live with himself? He has to know how miserable he is at what he does.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:06 pmThere it is.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:07 pmDid Bethany complain about Brian’s spot in the order or something?
Man, he’s on.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:07 pmRain now please!
June 13th, 2012 at 8:07 pmWoo-hoo! Come on down, rain. Let it flood.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:07 pmOK NOW IF THERES NO RAINOUT THEN KIMBREL MUST PITCH THE REST OF THE GAME
June 13th, 2012 at 8:08 pmIs there some reason Rodriguez’s home run last night was replayed about a half-dozen times in the first minute after it was hit, but McCann’s home run to take the lead hasn’t been thus far?
June 13th, 2012 at 8:09 pmMcCann didn’t tie Lou Gehrig’s all-time GS HR record with his bomb.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:10 pm#81
June 13th, 2012 at 8:14 pmIt’s a conspiracy of minor proportions.
I thought Mike pitched yesterday.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:15 pmJeter just cured cancer with that hit.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:18 pmShould’ve put in Kimbrel
June 13th, 2012 at 8:19 pmI hate losing to the Yankees. So. Much.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:19 pmThe Braves are making me ill.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:20 pmJust… what did we do, to have all the joy sucked out of our lives by these fuckers?
June 13th, 2012 at 8:20 pmThank God for Derek Jeter. If it hadn’t been for him, they would only be tied.
What a winner. Just sublime talent.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:20 pmWho has the “Fire Chip Now” petition?
June 13th, 2012 at 8:21 pmWe scored. Can we do it again?
June 13th, 2012 at 8:24 pmOur first base production is off the charts, best in the league.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:24 pmWe had a lead for what, 10 minutes? That was nice.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:25 pmFrancisco to the rescue Juan more time.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:27 pmJuan Fransisco’s time with this club has come to an end. Sunk cost, move on. Replace him with a right handed 1B that can pinch hit.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:28 pmJuan Francisco is tremendous. Just tremendous.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:28 pmI work with a Yankees fan. This sucks
June 13th, 2012 at 8:30 pmHe/She’s probably Fredi’s biggest fan.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:32 pmHe has no idea who is on our roster, much less who the manager is. But he loves his Yankees.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:37 pmI don’t know how they’ve escaped relatively unscathed at the ballpark, but it’s been a non-stop gully-washer of biblical proportion at my place for the last hour. If I didn’t live on the top floor, I would be starting to become concerned about flooding.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:45 pmHeyward vs. a LOOGY. Ugh.
June 13th, 2012 at 8:56 pmDiaz hits for neither Heyward nor Hinske?
June 13th, 2012 at 8:58 pmWell Done….more LOB….
June 13th, 2012 at 9:00 pmFrustration abounds.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:00 pmAfter that six-game winning streak, the Braves really kept the momentum going.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:00 pmDiaz stays on the bench, and Hinske is 1-12 against LHP this season. What in the hell is Fredi doing.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:01 pm11 left on base. Diaz shouldve been brought in for Hinske. If Torre goes to the righty then you have Freeman.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:01 pmTorre? Yeah, it feels like 1996 all over again, doesn’t it?
June 13th, 2012 at 9:03 pmHa, sorry.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:06 pm9 hits and 2 runs? My goodness.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:07 pmAnd here comes Venters.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:12 pmAt least he won’t see ARod.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:12 pmMuch better, Jonny.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:16 pmJack Wilson?
June 13th, 2012 at 9:21 pmI forgot about Wilson, why is he still on this team? He and Fransisco sure do solidify our bench. I have a little faith in Hinske, but at this point Im not sure why.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:22 pmCome on Prado
June 13th, 2012 at 9:24 pmTime for the magic Nitram, not the GIDP Nitram.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:25 pmHome run time for Prado.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:26 pmI hate myself. I hate life.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:27 pmAargh!
June 13th, 2012 at 9:28 pm$#*!@%@#$
June 13th, 2012 at 9:28 pmPainful.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:28 pmOf course he did.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:28 pmMore clutch hitting….
June 13th, 2012 at 9:28 pmI had strikeout, popout in the pool. That’s the thing with the Braves: you can never predict how they’re going to waste scoring chances.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:28 pmI hate Fredi
June 13th, 2012 at 9:28 pmThey just had to show how “great” the Braves are at scoring runs from 3rd, didnt they?
June 13th, 2012 at 9:28 pmKimbrel exists!
June 13th, 2012 at 9:31 pmA Kimbrel sighting, one night and one inning too late.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:31 pmAt least Kimbrel is rested. Thanks, Frediot!
June 13th, 2012 at 9:31 pmLOB
Braves – 13
June 13th, 2012 at 9:31 pmYankees – 3
#132–There we have it…..
June 13th, 2012 at 9:32 pmVisual representation of the Braves in this series:
http://tinyurl.com/czjzdg6
June 13th, 2012 at 9:33 pmShut up Chip, douche
June 13th, 2012 at 9:35 pmNice block, Heap.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:35 pmKimbrel is so filthy.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:37 pmSo the Braves have more hits, xbh, walks. Our pitchers have struck out more batters. Yet, we will lose another 1 run game. Rubbish
June 13th, 2012 at 9:38 pmThree strikeouts and a ground ball does not equal an inning and a third in this case, does it?
June 13th, 2012 at 9:38 pmYeah, would like to have seen that guy last night… sigh.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:39 pm@134 – I feel like the Braves have been more like this – http://gifrific.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/raptors-mascot-fall.gif
June 13th, 2012 at 9:40 pmSeeing Kimbrel dismantle these shitheads was a bright spot in an otherwise terrible game. So, sincerely: thanks for that, Fredi.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:40 pmKimbrel got four outs. And the moron in the dugout somehow thinks five outs — after two days’ rest — is beyond him.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:41 pmGreat AB’s
June 13th, 2012 at 9:43 pmFour game losing streak, five back in the division.
This is another reason the Wild Card is terrible, because otherwise people could forget about this team sometime in August.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:44 pmWe migght as well get some more LOB….
June 13th, 2012 at 9:46 pmWell, just don’t get Chipper into scoring position.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:46 pmYeah, Chipper. Come on, Jason.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:46 pmNothing but fastballs
June 13th, 2012 at 9:48 pmWell, that was delightful.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:48 pmGross. I don’t think I have the energy for another summer of this.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:49 pmWish that broken bat had gone straight through Jeter’s right eye. Would have also accepted A-Rod’s sternum.
What a shitheap series.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:49 pm#145–August? The way we are playing I would say July at the latest….
June 13th, 2012 at 9:49 pmThree wins closer to the playoffs for the Yankees, thanks to playing a joke of a team.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:49 pmThis team is too streaky and has too many useless parts.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:53 pmI still think this is a 75 to 80 win team. I’ll watch every game regardless, but the expectations just aren’t there.
June 13th, 2012 at 9:59 pmOh, and Kimbrel pitched a filthy 9th tonight. Fredi’s master plan to keep him fresh and nail down the loss seems to have worked to perfection.
June 13th, 2012 at 10:02 pmWhat I also like is how we finished September and then how much the Front Office did to improve the team in the offseason….
June 13th, 2012 at 10:13 pmAlright, let’s get ‘em next week in The Bronx…
June 13th, 2012 at 10:22 pmWe didnt have Fransisco in September.
June 13th, 2012 at 10:42 pmGood Point!
June 13th, 2012 at 10:50 pmOr Livan.
June 14th, 2012 at 12:27 amMatt Cain, perfect game. Two more this year.
June 14th, 2012 at 12:34 amIt would be so awesome if we stopped losing.
June 14th, 2012 at 1:18 amWhat a stupid game that was. So many hits! So many runners left on! The only time Bourne gets a hit is the only time he came up that runners weren’t on base! (Well, except his first AB, obviously.)
And is no one else bother by the fact that it’s okay to bring in Kimbrel down 1 in the 9th but NOT up 4 with the bases loaded and one out in the 8th? I mean, SERIOUSLY?! Going with Venters was the right decision up until the moment he loaded the bases and a RH power hitter was up. THEN you tell your closer to buck up and throw an extra two thirds of an inning.
June 14th, 2012 at 2:28 amAnd yeah, csg @108 is 100% right. If you don’t pinch hit Matt Diaz for Eric Hinske against a LOOGY, why on Earth is Diaz on the roster? I’m forced to assume that Freeman was simply unable to play tonight (because, you know, they had him come back two days to early and now his finger hurts again or something stupid like that), because the alternative (Fredi really, truely, was not paying any attention) is absurd.
June 14th, 2012 at 2:32 amHinske looks like he can’t play baseball anymore. And yeah, I guess Diaz is only allowed to take AB’s away from Heyward. It’s asking a bit too much for Fredi to pay attention for the *whole* game. 9 innings is a lot. And it was raining.
June 14th, 2012 at 5:34 amGregor Blanco’s Remarkable Catch
June 14th, 2012 at 7:00 am@167
This is something I have thought about Fredi too. I know he is there at the game, but there are things that happen in the game that makes you think he is not paying attention.
Maybe he is just SUPER level headed or just a very calm guy. But I think he tends to jsut let things go too much.
June 14th, 2012 at 7:22 am@169 Fredi isn’t THAT level headed, because he snips at the media and the “SABR guys” all the time.
June 14th, 2012 at 7:50 amI know the Venters/A-Rod debacle was a game ago and that it’s not fair to take AJC writers’ justifications for Fredi’s decisions as Fredi’s own. But their rationale — that Kimbrel throws lots of pitches and couldn’t make it through 1 2/3 IP — only underscores just how constricted the stupid conventional thinking is about bullpen management. If what they’re saying about Kimbrel is true, what’s wrong with using Kimbrel to get out of the jam, so you can hand a 4-0 game over to Durbin in the 9th? Even if Kimbrel grybos in a run or two, let Durbin pitch with the slate clean and get a rogue save.
I have to figure a Freeman setback kept Fredi from switching out Hinske. I have to. There’s only so much idiocy I can take.
It’ll be interesting to see what happens to Medlen now. It’ll say something about how much they believe in Minor and Delgado.
June 14th, 2012 at 7:53 amAgree totally with Adam R. Except that goes against the sacred Book of Conventional Managing circa 2012 which states: “Only the annointed closer can close a game. Use of non-annointed closer to close game will cause head to explode.”
June 14th, 2012 at 8:21 am@171
I think you let Medlin work it out in AAA until the All Star Break.
Then I think you look at the biggest on the field issues and trade one of Minor, Delgatto or Medlin (or possibly put Medlin back in the pen if Minor and Delgatto are rolling)
As of now, we need to upgrade our bench and bullpen. That should cost a lot less than one of those three.
I think we will look in the system for bullpen help.
June 14th, 2012 at 8:34 amWe have to upgrade the bench core of Wilson, Fransisco, Hinske. Ross and Diaz are useful. We really need a RH’d corner infield/outfield bat. We also need at least one good RH’d arm for the pen.
Wilson .167/.190/.183
June 14th, 2012 at 8:44 amHinske .214/.287/.274
Fransisco .229/.250/.438
Why are the Braves so bad at home? Is it just randomness or is there a cause? Except for the first homestand, they have been lousy in Atlanta.
June 14th, 2012 at 8:55 amHinske has earned the opportunity to turn it around. I agree about Wilson and Francisco — dead weight.
June 14th, 2012 at 9:10 am#176 – I agree on Hinske and Im fine with him getting PH duty, just dont like him in the field.
June 14th, 2012 at 9:32 amAs a big “Forrest Gump” fan, I can’t help but think of this year’s Braves as a Whitman’s Sampler.
If someone here can make a strong case, either way, on how the Braves will fare against the Orioles this weekend, I’d love to hear it. I’m lost.
I guess I should be thankful I’ll see a lot of them on ESPN next week.
June 14th, 2012 at 9:34 amFransisco probably has some trade value.
June 14th, 2012 at 9:34 amCan’t Diaz or Ross play 1B for a inning? Letting Hinske face a tough lefty, pinch-bunting, not making Bourn steal second when Prado is up…it’s death by a thousand cuts with Fredi.
June 14th, 2012 at 9:46 amRecapped.
June 14th, 2012 at 9:48 am@175 – The 4.66 home ERA would have something to do with it. And that the Braves have been out-homered, out-doubled and out-stolen(?) at Turner Field.
I guess those are just the results and don’t get at the ‘why’ but I’ve got nothing except that the Braves’ pitching hasn’t been very good and the pitcher’s park helps the enemy’s staff more.
June 14th, 2012 at 9:51 am