Francona
Friday night’s loss to the Yankees was clearly frustrating and disappointing. But as I thought about the game, I thought of a couple moves that Francona made - which to me, were the right moves, even though they didn’t work. There may be others, but these two stuck out:
First, bringing Papelbon into the mess in the 8th. Okajima had nothing, it was a 3-run game, with two men on and nobody out. Not only did he have Papelbon ready, but he pulled the trigger and brought him in. That was the time to bring in his “closer”. It didn’t work, as we all know - but it was definitely the right move.
Second, pinch-running Coco for Lowell in the bottom of the eighth and having him (try to) steal second. It didn’t work, but it was the right move. The only possible discontent may be that Coco should’ve run sooner, during the Youkilis at-bat, but perhaps he anticipated a long at-bat (usually the case with Youk) and was trying to time the pitcher on the first few pitches when Youk flied out (too quickly, if you will).
Now, Red Sox Nation will be predictably melancholy and fatalistic today - and if Beckett and the Sox falter later today, they’ll only get worse… if Beckett and the Sox come through later today… well, they’ll still be melancholy and fatalistic. It’s their job. It’s what they do.
But I got to thinking that some armchair managers will somehow try to pin last night’s loss on Francona (which is seemingly the case in every Red Sox loss). I don’t know how he’s perceived nationally, and I’m not suggesting he’s in the discussion for best manager in the game (which starts with Leyland and Scioscia, IMHO). But Francona is a lot better than the locals want to believe. He made the right moves last night, but the players didn’t execute… nothing more he could’ve done.
September 17th, 2007 at 9:09 pm
I, for one, love Francona. He’s had some gacks this year (like letting Beckett pitch to Arod in the 8th inning at the Stadium last month), but all-in-all I’d say he does a pretty good job in-game, and he does an unbelievable job with the other very important parts of the job, those being player, media and management relations.
That said, I didn’t stay up for the end on Friday night (thankfully), but I was told that he didn’t get anyone up until after Okajima got into more trouble after the two home runs, and that Paps was rushed into the game. Not sure if that’s true, but if it is, that’s a mistake. With the way Okajima has been going, you’ve got to get Bucholtz or MDC up after the two bombs.
September 18th, 2007 at 9:34 am
I don’t specifically recall Friday night, but my recollection is Papelbon was up at *least* as early as after the two bombs… but in fairness to Francona, Giambit hit his HR on the second pitch of the at-bat - and Cano hit his HR on the fifth pitch of the at-bat. So the Sox have a 7-2 lead at the start of the inning, and in a matter of 7 pitches, its 7-4. Again, my recollection is Papelbon was up by then - but I could be mistaken.
Melky Cabrera then walked on five pitches. Damon gets his double on the second pitch. Papelbon comes in (rushed or not), and Jeter gets his single on the first pitch. Abreu, hit on second pitch. ARod, hit on second pitch.
Point is… that inning (or more accurately, the 5-run lead) went *real* quick.
And as I mentioned, bringing Papelbon into that situation was *exactly* the right move. Papelbon is their best reliever, and the game is on the line at *that* point. If Papelbon could get six outs, super… but the important thing was that he get three outs in the 8th before surrendering (at the time he came in) at least three runs. If he expended too much energy, then bring CB or MDC into a clean 9th if you have to. No sense “saving” Papelbon. Francona made the right moves, but his players simply failed to execute (which can happen - see Rivera, Mariano, and the fact that a full 1/4 of his career blown saves are against one team… the Red Sox).
One thing on Buchholz: Where’s he been? It seems pretty clear that they’ll need him out of the bullpen in the playoffs (if not down the stretch)… but he’s all but disappeared. I understand the “innings limit” thing, but I don’t believe he’s close. The only thing I can think of is that he will be getting a start or two before year-end, as they set the playoff rotation.
September 18th, 2007 at 7:27 pm
He’s starting tomorrow night, I believe. DiceK is being moved back to Saturday to both rest him (which he seems to need) and to line up the rotation for the playoffs.
September 18th, 2007 at 8:04 pm
Yup… saw that. I’m likely overreacting, as I’m wont to do, but… who would you feel more confident with starting a playoff game in two weeks: Buchholz or Dice-K?
Don’t misunderstand, I love Dice-K - and I love that we have both of these guys tied up for the next 5 years (Dice-K under contract, and Buchholz via arbitration, if no contract is signed before he gets to FA). But the way Dice-K’s been pitching lately, and the poise and stuff that Buchholz is showing… I dunno - Buchholz might be the better option.
Let’s see what Buchholz does tomorrow night, and what Dice-K does on Saturday.