Cloudy in the capital…

Rock on

I bet if we studied all major league managers (somebody with a lot of time on their hands has probably done so) we would find that they all make mistakes. Sometimes, hindsight is SOOO 20-20 though.

Bobby has never been know as an X’s and O’s kind of manager. He has always had the reputation of being a players manager, getting the most possible out of his entire roster. That has served him very well MANY times over the years, but it has also been an albatross on occasion (Andruw Jones a couple of years back).

It’ kinda like going to the ice cream shop. You can get Rocky Road, or Chocolate Marble. You get what you get. Can’t have it both ways.

Bobby is an institution in Atlanta, much like our beloved Jerry Sloan is in Utah. Neither is going to change their stripes. There are media and fans here in Utah EVERY year calling for Jerry’s head on a platter, but it ain’t gonna happen.

Why keep pounding your head on that same brick wall, time and time again??

McFann:

Hang in there young lady, I am sure Carroll will pass along the news as soon as she gets it!

• Link
• Report this comment

Wayne–I think were on the same page as far as working the count (or at least in the same chapter). There are times to jump on a guy early in the count if he throws a lot of first pitch strikes and fastballs. What frustrates me is when batter after batter jumps on the first pitch and either gets in a whole by chasing balls or gets a first pitch out. I would think at some point after that has happened inning after inning (or game after game as is the case now) the hitting coach should have sense enough to pull some guys aside and say “Hey, how about next at bat let’s see a strike before we go hacking”

And like I said earlier, maybe Pendelton is doing that. But if he is, guys obviously aren’t listening to him, which would lead me to believe that they don’t respect him as a hitting coach. If that’s the case, there has to be a change of coaches.

And I love Bobby, and would be upset if he was fired and run out of town, but I’m starting to doubt whether or not he’s an effective manager any longer. That being said, I want him to stay as long as he wants to because I don’t see him as being the main problem with this team.

• Link
• Report this comment

How do you wait for a three run HR? Is it anything like waiting for Godot? Is it pretty much as meaningless? How long must we wait for it? What if it never comes? Inquiring minds want to know.

• Link
• Report this comment

Wayne, please tell me you didn’t just say “clogging the basepaths!”

And to the guy that is taking bets on over/under 88 losses, I’ll take the under, thank you very much. Our starting pitching, with the exception of JoJo’s start, has kept us in every single game we’ve played. That doesn’t often suggest a team will lose 88 games.

• Link
• Report this comment

LT—You would prefer to have Dunn at first base over Kotchman? Oh the horror. Kotchman has saved how many throwing errors over at first so far this season? Maybe you didn’t see the USA in the WBC, Dunn almost single handedly lost one of the game for them with his horrid defense in the outfield, and you would put him at first? Dam, I’m scared to close my eyes now for fear of that image creeping into my dreams!

• Link
• Report this comment

Good morning Lew.

• Link
• Report this comment

D.LOwe has great stuff and he certainly deserved more run support, but he looked like a pitcher that had a train to catch last night. Whenever he gets erratic he just goes at it faster. HIs problems seemed to be his release point, the 1st couple of innings his sinker was really diving from waist high to knee high moving down and away from left handers, then it looked to me that he began throwing more in an upright position and his pitches flattened out and they hit some balls deep. Then he goes back to the position he started the game with and they started dipping again but then he couldn’t locate it, everything was low. Every pitcher has to have consistent mechanics in order to pitch their best but it seems exceptionally so with sinker ballers like LOwe and Moylan. It really makes you appreciate a Greg Maddux or a Tom Glavine in the simplicity of their mechanics and how effective they were.

• Link
• Report this comment

Steve

Should I have said clogging “on” the basepaths??

I think I’ll pass on Dunn. He strikes me as the guy who will hit a homer every 4th game, usually with nobody on (when the pitchers are pitching to him). All other times, he is TOO cautious, and takes a multitude of walks when runners are already on base. With him, you still need someone hitting behind him that can drive in the runs he moved over one base.

• Link
• Report this comment

is this thing working?

• Link
• Report this comment

jbutler

Go up and link under “recent posts” the top line about diaz saying it’s not ho hum or somthing like that….

• Link
• Report this comment

The team just seems so lethargic and lackluster to me, they don’t even look like they care if they win or lose. I know it is a long season and you can’t be all Rah Rah everynight, but please at least look like you want to win. You look at the time, money and effort the fans put in to this and all we get in return is….Oh well we lost again…..It is frustrating.

• Link
• Report this comment

*******************
By Coach ( This is how the Braves get over the hump.)

August 24, 2007 4:31 PM | Link to this

Ya’ll can sit down and listen to some plain old common sense. How to improve the Braves odds in the wild card chase ? It’s addition by subtraction. Come September 1st , bring up every single pitcher on the 40 man giving the Braves 21 total pitchers. Junk the five man rotation , it’s killing the Braves. The old four man rotation would give Hudson and Smoltz 18 or 19 starts over the last 34 games. Limit them both to 75 pitches or five innings , which ever comes first and use that 17 man bullpen over the last three or four innings. It’s not rocket science , it’s baseball. Smoltz and Hudson are winning at a .700 clip over the last two months. Do the math , 66 wins plus 13 or 14 wins from the two aces. The remaining 15-16 games would require nothing more than .500 from the other two starters ( Cormier/James). That would presumably put the Braves around 87-89 wins , well into wild card territory. It’s better than sticking with the five man rotation and limiting the pitch count , not throwing on the side would be the same as pitching every fifth day. There ya go , maximize the two aces , limit the damage from the rest of the rotation. Lew , would have never thought of this. NEVER.
*******************
By Coach ( This is how the Braves get over the hump.)

August 24, 2007 4:58 PM | Link to this

Hey , thanks guys. The Braves used a four man rotation all of 1993 and it worked like a charm.
*******************
By flange1

August 24, 2007 5:06 PM | Link to this

Oh my god LEW,

Can you believe it? A 4 man rotation! WOW, we could have never thought of that!

A 41 year old pitcher with a sore body and an surgically repaired sholder and elbow should be able to go from pitching on 4 days rest for his whole life to pitching on 3 days rest after 3/4 of a season and then be fresh for the playoffs,

SURE IT’S GOT TO WORK, IT CAME FROM COACH!!!
*******************
By Paladin

August 24, 2007 5:16 PM | Link to this

Coach After brain-flatulence like that you could at least have the decency to fan behind you. And it smells like the drooler crawled up inside you, and died.
*******************
By Lew

August 24, 2007 5:17 PM | Link to this

Coach-You’re absolutely right. I wouldn’t have thought of destroying Smoltz’s arm with extreme overuse. AS far as bringing up the other pitchers, Do you even realize that KC has advocated this for the past week? Do you even bother to read anyone’s thoughts besides your own? This is what we waited for all of this time you pounded your chest and bragged about how smart you were? Talk about a let down. I thought maybe you might have a plan worth something. According to you, something no one else was capable of coming up with and what we end up with is expand the rosters? And of course, James is out of the equation for at least another week and a half. Yeah, that works.
*******************
By Coach ( Hank Aaron Is The Real HR Champion.)

August 24, 2007 5:23 PM | Link to this

The children have come over from the other blog. Lew , Flange1 or whatever you multiple personality bloggers call yourselves , your not fooling anybody. I’m out , nursery school isn’t my cup of tea.
*******************
By Head Options Expert

August 24, 2007 5:34 PM | Link to this

Will someone please explain to ole Head Cooch what the options consequences are for bringing up the entire 40 man roster to pitch?

Does anyone dare do that after the retarded insistence of the Head Cooch the last time?

*******************
By Willy Wally

August 24, 2007 5:39 PM | Link to this

I’m out , nursery school isn’t my cup of tea.

Oh, what’s the matter Cooch? Are you now admitting to being a failure as a Coach for nursery school kids as well?
*******************
By The Grinch

August 25, 2007 12:08 AM | Link to this

Smoltz continues to amaze. I’ve said since I started posting here about 18 months ago that I’ve never liked Smoltz much as a person, but by Godfey that sumgun has got something more than talent going for him. He’s about as true grit as Rooster Cogburn.

Great catch by Andruw, obviously.

Braveheart, your Freudian “slip” on Coach is classic.

SG, you said something earlier I found clever and amusing, but I’m too drunk to remember what it was. Just accept this generic tip of the hat.
*******************

• Link
• Report this comment