Fire Fredi? No, but the Braves did some major mismanaging
Esteemed colleague Mike Luckovich offers this extremely flattering bit of imagery.
Midnight had come and gone, and Frank Wren stood in Bill Acree’s office just off the main clubhouse. (Acree is the Braves’ director of travel, and earlier he’d been triangulating the hoped-for trip to St. Louis and then to Milwaukee or Phoenix. Moot point now.) The general manager was staring at a TV above the door. Boston had just lost. Tampa Bay had just won.
“Coming into September,” Wren said, disbelief in his voice, “we [meaning the Red Sox and the Braves] had two of the four best records in baseball.”
Neither will be part of the sport’s eight-team tournament, and today the Braves’ one source of consolation is that the Sox choked even harder than they did. (Unbelievable that two of the three biggest September flops in the game’s century-long annals were concluded within moments of each other. The third happened in 1964 to the Pholdin’ Phils.) There were similarities in these contemporary collapses — starting pitchers got hurt and everything unraveled — but we’ll let long-suffering New Englanders suffer long with theirs.
As for the local nine: Wren did his job. He built a good-looking team. He landed Michael Bourn in July and fleshed out his roster with Matt Diaz and Jack Wilson in August. (And what did the glove man Wilson do? Became the new Brooks Conrad by erring on a double-play grounder that became Philadelphia’s second run Wednesday night.) This should have been a playoff team, and for 5 1/2 months it was playoff-bound. Then it derailed itself.
Blame should attach itself to Fredi Gonzalez, but not the sort that has been tossed around. Jose Constanza would not have saved the season. (He’s a journeyman. Come on.) Starting Derek Lowe in Game No. 161 was a justifiable choice. (You’d start the rookie Julio Teheran instead? Come on.) This wasn’t so much about managing situations — every manager, even the learned La Russa, whiffs on a nightly basis — as in managing people.
I’m not a big fan of team meetings, but sometimes they’re necessary. Gonzalez had one after the Braves lost seven of nine early in the month, which might have been a day too late, and another after they lost Game No. 161 to fall into a tie with St. Louis. What Fredi said Tuesday night was appropriate — “I wouldn’t pick any other guys over you to go out and win a game” — but by then the panic was full-blown. Panic is why this season ended after 162 games.
Ninth inning, Game No. 162: The kid closer Craig Kimbrel is on to do as he has done 46 times in 53 tries — slam the door. He yields a leadoff single to Placido Polanco, strikes out Carlos Ruiz, walks the part-timer Ben Francisco. It’s clear the kid closer, who’s 23, is trying to hurl the ball through the backstop. (”I was overthrowing,” Kimbrel admitted.) Brian McCann walks to the mound.
Roger McDowell sits in the dugout.
Only after Kimbrel walks Jimmy Rollins to load the bases does the pitching coach emerge to speak to his kid pitcher. (Something similar happened in Monday’s game, when McDowell watched as the Phillies mustered four base runners and one run in the fourth inning before going to the mound to counsel the rookie Randall Delgado.) It’s entirely possible that a coaching visitation would have had no effect on Kimbrel, but why not try? Why didn’t Gonzalez say, “Roger, get out there,” one batter sooner?
I asked. This was Fredi’s response: “That’s here or there.”
But it isn’t. There are certain things managers can do to manage a game, and dispatching a pitching coach is one. The Braves’ dugout seemed to be a beat slow in this final series, this whole final month. Again, it might have made no difference. Again, why not try?
And then the hitting, or the lack thereof. Once the Phillies tied it, nearly every Brave wanted to be Kirk Gibson. Guys were overswinging as badly as Kimbrel had overthrown. The Phils were deploying pitchers who won’t work a postseason inning, and the Braves’ flailing made Justin DeFratus and David Herndon look like Mariano Rivera.
“We’ve been swinging really, really hard for a while,” said Chipper Jones, who had the best late-game swing — the deep drive that Michael Martinez hauled down in the 10th — of any Brave. And that, sad to say, was this team’s signature: Swing really hard in case it hit something.
Under hitting coach Terry Pendleton, the 2010 Braves led the National League in on-base percentage. Under Larry Parrish, the 2011 Braves were 14th of 16 teams. Parrish was hired as hitting coach despite never having been a big-league hitting coach. Maybe the Braves would have hit .193 in September with runners in scoring position with Ty Cobb as their tutor. Then again, maybe they wouldn’t.
Yes, players ultimately must bear the blame for plays unmade, but this fine team was, in the end, both too laid-back in its oversight and too tightly wrapped in its playing. I don’t think Fredi Gonzalez needs to be fired — he did, after all, lose his two best starting pitchers — but I do think he needs to be more assertive. He absolutely needs a new hitting coach, but …
No such luck. Fredi announced Thursday the coaching staff would return intact. Which makes you wonder about Fredi.
By Mark Bradley
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585 comments Add your comment
teamguy
September 29th, 2011
2:24 pm
At least I can get to bed a little earlier tonight. As to starting a rookie over Lowe, we sent a rookie in to close the game. What’s the difference? Come on, Mark.
the hot seat.....
September 29th, 2011
2:26 pm
Hey Mark, I know your hindsight is 20/20, but how good is your forward vision, 20/400?
cristianlobo
September 29th, 2011
2:29 pm
Fire Fredi. Too much “tip your cap, go get ‘em next time, we’re not playing bad baseball, that’s just the way it goes sometimes, great effort” no-results nonsense. This void, this utter lack of guidance and motivation must be addressed. Fire Parrish too, for a paralyzed offense. Fire McDowell just to be safe, better men have been eliminated for less. Clear the air of this stench and let’s get away from the buddy system as the litmus for qualifying key coaching positions. To stand pat after this debacle would be shameful. Fredi Gonzalez seems over his head. Bobby’s laid-back style worked for Bobby because he at least had a great managerial mind for situations and maximizing personel, Being both laid back and inept is a disastrous combination, as we’ve just had demonstrated for us in living color. What a vapid September. Oh well, at least there is a lot of good baseball to watch in the coming weeks, without our particular brand of crap to block the view.
the hot seat.....
September 29th, 2011
2:29 pm
I wonder how many of the posters on here beotching about Gonzalez were bashing Cox last year?
Dawg Tired
September 29th, 2011
2:30 pm
I just took a look at Boston.com – The Boston Globe – and found their front page remark about the Sox interesting. It said: “WHAT WENT WRONG???” What does the AJC front page say about the Braves? It asked whether the luster was off of Fredi. There’s the difference between the two towns in a nutshell…
the hot seat.....
September 29th, 2011
2:30 pm
Oh yeah, does Heyward have his bat coated with something that repels baseballs? It was like watching a 5-year old at the plate last night.
Sonny Clusters
September 29th, 2011
2:32 pm
“A huntin’ we will go, a huntin’ we will go, Heigh ho, the dairy-o, a hunting we will go!”
Cecil34
September 29th, 2011
2:32 pm
A more Big-Blue-Arrow view:
The more distance the Braves put between themselves and the 90’s, and we start to see that the success of the 90’s(and very early 2000’s) was a mere blip on the radar screen of the overall lack of success and direction of this franchise since 1966.
The management of this organization, whether it be a consortium under Bill Bartholomay, or later Ted Turner, or even Kasten, McGuirk/Shuerholtz/Liberty Media era, has been lacking in instituting a long-term plan of success that ensures performing at the highest levels of MLB.
I’m talking World Series here, fellas, not division championships, which, quite frankly in the modern, watered down, over-expansioned era of baseball really are cheap playprettys as compared to the big enchilada.
This organization’s failure to capture but one world series amidst all the division crowns (whoopee) to me is a clear indication of substandard performance in the following areas:
On-field management
Major league personnel management
Minor league personnel management
Budget and Financial management
While it is obvious that some of the correct decisions were actually made from time to time and panned out, more correctly it can be asserted that the overall decision-making process has been off the mark and flawed.
This is to say that Atlantan’s can definitively give the Braves organization as a whole a D+ grade at best.
Thus we arrive at the Great Give-away 2011!
It is apparent to me that Atlantans and the Atlanta media (beware of getting in bed with the enemy, DOB!) should demand change and seek change at the highest levels of this operation or continue to expect much of the same substandard effort of the last 45 years.
Wonder what kind of column Outlar, Bisher or Hyland would have written about these Braves?
Jason Heyward's Gynecologist
September 29th, 2011
2:32 pm
I have an old med school friend who is a superb, well-respected Proctologist.
Perhaps I could recommend her to Fredi Gonzalez in order to help dislodge his head.
the hot seat.....
September 29th, 2011
2:32 pm
“Fire Fredi? No, but the Braves did some major mismanaging”
Hey Mark, how has the AJC managed the subscription rates lately?
Michael
September 29th, 2011
2:32 pm
First…. I’m a die-hard Bravo fan. Second, this team (for the last 12 games) sucked and I mean bad. Like Bourn said no other team is going to lie down for them…so why quit on yourselves. We were in situations where players have been on base with one and two outs (alot of time with”NO” outs) and could not drive any in. It’s got to change. Why isn’t anyone asking what happen to Chipper. Gather the team in the dugout before taken the field and go 0-4 does not make a good captain. I know guys get hurt during the season and that is to be expected but, this month (September) is the time you suck up and take no prisoners. Should Fredi be let go…I don’t know…but imagine, would it have been different if say a Bobby Valentine, Ozzie G…. a manager with fire was there?
philly55
September 29th, 2011
2:33 pm
We had our triple A club out there for the most part for the extra innings and we STILL SWEPT YO’ BUTTS! HAHAHAHAHAAHAH….Phillies didn’t just sweep, but SWEPT THE BRAVES RIGHT ON OUTTA HERE!
Bye bye, Braves. You’re the new Cubs! ahahahah
Curious George
September 29th, 2011
2:34 pm
After being at last night’s game and then reading this article today, should I call up to cancel my Braves tickets or my AJC subscription first?
STRETCH
September 29th, 2011
2:34 pm
Well, i know i will be right back next season. Love my Atlanta teams, what else am i going to do? Root for any team that wins a championship? Thats not my style.
Im already looking forward to the off season moves Wren is gonna make.
Glanville on ESPN said that worse case, the Braves might have to move Lowe to the pen. I can accept that. With that pitching staff, they can afford to let JJ or Hansen go for a hitter.
Next they are going to have to find a LF with some pop though.
North over South
September 29th, 2011
2:35 pm
Why is everybody so surprised of poor performance of the Brave it’s been going on for 40 years now
Dawg Tired
September 29th, 2011
2:37 pm
Hey Jason Heyward’s Gynecologist… what is the diagnosis on Jason?
Shawny
September 29th, 2011
2:41 pm
Any monkey can pitch O’flaherty in the 7th, Venters in the 8th, and Kimbrel in the 9th EVERY SINGLE GAME when we have a small lead. Forget righty/lefty matchups. Just use the scoreboard and trot them out there.
That isn’t managing.
Venters was very cold for a while. Give him some time in situations when the game isn’t on the line to get better.
And what is the deal with Lowe. It doesn’t matter how much we are paying him, there are young kids in AAA that pitch better than he does. Sit his butt down.
He better not be here next year.
TN Jeff
September 29th, 2011
2:41 pm
No way to gauge it going in BUT the Braves DESPERATELY need a team leader that will do more than just talk. What was Longoria doing when the Rays needed clutch hitting in a desperate late inning situation. He hits a 3 run homer to draw them to within 1 run and then hits the walk off homer in extra innings to win the game. Chipper too often comes up short in key games (like every post season early exit since his Hall of Fame buddies left the team to him).
Brother John
September 29th, 2011
2:41 pm
Michael, Fredi should be fired. Quite frankly, never should have been hired. Something ugly is going on behind the scenes that we Bravo fans are not privy to. It’s sad for the fans. Other teams get active and make major changes. We sit on our hands — like Fruiti Fredi does in the dug out. I can’t imagine why anyone would attend a Braves game next year. Money talks. Drop in revenue will bring changes fast and furious!
Skeezix
September 29th, 2011
2:42 pm
I don’t know Mark. Hope you are right about keeping Fredi. He did have injuries to key players–but still the talent was there to finsh September without blowing the huge lead they had. He seems to be ’slow on the uptake’ to me. ………… maybe he was panicing along with his players and became dysfunctional too. That would help explain the collapse. But we need a guy in that job who doesn’t panic/choke when things look dire. My gut says he isn’t going to work out; but I hope I am wrong. Been wrong many times before.
I sure wish he’d learn how to chew out umpires. That bad call at third on Bourne —he should has raised H___.
Landshark
September 29th, 2011
2:43 pm
Anybody heard from the two smug know-it-alls…Joe Simpleton and Leo Fullabaloney?
Sonny Clusters
September 29th, 2011
2:44 pm
Chipper Interview in AJC: You’ve said you’re playing next year, this change anything?
“No. I’ve committed to playing next year. I won’t commit past that; let’s put it that way. I’m looking forward to it. As tough a pill as it is to swallow, for a lot of these young guys it’s a learning experience. We got our butts kicked for the last couple of weeks of the season and they’re going to learn a lot from it and be better ballplayers for it.”
Only the young players learn from this? What about Chipper? He truly is a slow learner because he has been on the Braves teams that have failed again and again to win the big games. Time for a change. If he comes back, let him play part-time and bat sixth. Don’t let this be his team anymore. Longoria stepped up last night. That’s what the star is supposed to do. Almost doesn’t cut it. We was always in favor of winning instead of losing.
Pat McGroin
September 29th, 2011
2:45 pm
I am trying to picture button-down, conservative, quiet, white-bread Wren/Schuerholtz dealing with an Ozzie Guillen or Bobby Valentine as manager. lol I can envision them hitting the bottle HARD while confiding in each other about how the colorful manager is driving them to drink as they pine for the good ole days with an obedient and quiet Bobby and Fredi – - ahh… the good ole days!
Starring Kam Fong as Chin Ho
September 29th, 2011
2:46 pm
The Braves put on a pretty good show for 5 mths. I have been a fan since 66 and will remain so. My kids have flaws, but I don’t throw them under the bus when something goes wrong and I will not throw this team under the bus either. I, for one, had an enjoyable summer watching this Braves team and although the ending was painful, I’ll be back next year full of hope and expectation. Freddi gets a pass (first year and following a legend), Parrish……fired. The everyday line up is good enough. Middle relief is every teams weakness but could be a strength for the 2012 Braves. I hate to say it but Prado could be the odd man out as the Braves could use some power in the outfield. The bench is solid and with Medlen coming back the starting pitching should be better. The back end of the bullpen is as good as any in the league. I’m ready for spring training.
Jason Heyward's Gynecologist
September 29th, 2011
2:48 pm
Hello, Dawg Tired @ 2:37 PM.
Unfortunately, I am bound by doctor-patient confidentiality from openly discussing my patient’s medical history.
However, what I can tell you that is that my patient is not improving at all and that I am REALLY beginning to hate my job.
I think it is time to refer Miss Heyward to a more localized specialist.
Paging, Dr. Kervorkian!
Paging, Dr. Kervorkian!
Dawg Trainer
September 29th, 2011
2:49 pm
Looks like the Dawg Trainer might have to change his job description to “The Braves Trainer”. Take a page from the Cardinals. To a man, their philosophy is: “Play a hard nine”. Chris Carpenter pitched a hard nine. Gave up two hits and a walk. No runs. He knew it was win or go home. Cards hitters got 3 runs before the first out was posted in the first inning. They played hard and played to win. Once the Braves’ youngsters learn to play a hard nine, they’ll be alright. Just ran out of gas this season.
O'Brien
September 29th, 2011
2:50 pm
Najeh,
It also reminds me of how Richt stuck with Martinez way too long as his defensive coordinator.
Bob
September 29th, 2011
2:50 pm
Mark, you have written a nice article and I respect your opinion; however, I disagree. The Braves need to clean house beginning with the manager and coaches to rid the team of this ” Cox culture”. Go back and read Tumbleweed’s post on the front page of your blog…our September collapse is just the symptom, the root cause is this inbred culture.
shmoe
September 29th, 2011
2:50 pm
FOR THE LAST TIME PEOPLE, Bourn was OUT at 3rd when he hopped off the bag. Why is this so hard for people to understand?
extremus
September 29th, 2011
2:51 pm
Mr. Bradley, please let me pose this question to you:
Suppose this was 2012 and the Braves HAD managed to hold their 8 1/2 game wildcard lead over the Cardinals (meaning there was no September collapse), only then to lose a one-game playoff against a team nearly ten games worse record-wise than themselves and be eliminated from the playoffs. Tell me, do you think that scenario might just be more frustrating, deflating, and infuriating than what just occurred this season? Because next year just such a scenario is entirely plausible.
What would be more painful to bear for Braves (or ANY team’s) fans; a month-long malaise and total heartless collapse or a one-game elimination that ends a truly promising season? Your thoughts, please.
O'Brien
September 29th, 2011
2:51 pm
I’m not surprised Fredi is bringing back his entire staff though. After all, he is from the Bobby Cox coaching tree, and Cox was very loyal too (his his staff and his players).
blue
September 29th, 2011
2:52 pm
Mark; one thing I disagree with is that Lowe’s past years have NO bearing on right now. There is a very RECENT…and extended (for this year…the year that counts NOW) history of this guy being well below average. He has been ineffective all year. So yes…there are several different guys I would have been comfortable in trotting out there.
Celtic Fan
September 29th, 2011
2:55 pm
here’s the thing that irritates me- It’s reading Kimbrel’s quotes after the game, to the effect that everything as going so fast, and he was trying too hard, etc. etc. Correct me if I’m wrong, but doesn’t every kid think about that moment every day of his life from Little League onward? All Fredi has to do is fill out the line up card and GET HIS GUYS READY TO PLAY.
He failed miserably. I say he needs to go, for what it’s worth.
And BTW, I’m beginning to think Chipper is a huge problem in the clubhouse.
Curious George
September 29th, 2011
2:57 pm
Will Terry Francona be available for the Braves in the next few days?
After their similar collapse, would the Braves even want him?
Ted
September 29th, 2011
3:01 pm
If you want change, you write to Liberty Media, tell them how much you spend on games, pkg and concessions, and complain about their products, i.e Braves mgmt and coaches.
GIVE ME A BREAK
September 29th, 2011
3:03 pm
The Braves are the joke of the day on CNBC.
Pat McGroin
September 29th, 2011
3:04 pm
Jason Heyward’s Gynecologist: Thanks for the analysis. We are all hopeful that you can prescribe some kind of medication – or use hypnosis to get him to remove the skirt. We’re counting on you, doc!!
LOL
September 29th, 2011
3:10 pm
Well Derek Lowe choking everytime he started a game since like April didn’t help at all. If that clown is on the roster next year, and starting, I will not be watching.
Jason Heyward's Gynecologist
September 29th, 2011
3:12 pm
Thank you for the vote of confidence, Pat McGroin @ 3:04 PM.
However, I am only a doctor, not a miracle worker.
It is like trying to reverse an inversion of what we in the medical field now refer to as “Chastity Bono Syndrome” by essentially turning a Jason Heyward into a Matt Diaz.
Curt
September 29th, 2011
3:14 pm
Aside from his obvious lack of ability to manage pitchers, Fredi spent all season changing the batting order. It understandable when a player gets injured but when the order is tweeked so much, it does affect players hitting.
Hitters have spots in the order that just work for their hitting style and personality. Fredi never seemed to get what spot in the order worked for which player and so he kept adjusting and adjusting right up to the very end. This is one of the reasons the team did not hit well when it needed to and a big reason that Fredi should not return as the manager.
Diaz and Wilson??
September 29th, 2011
3:16 pm
Mark, come on. Wren did his job by getting Matt Diaz and Jack Wilson?? Please. When a team goes into Game 162 with Matt Diaz starting in right field and Jack Wilson starting at shortstop, the general manager has not done his job.
Fredi worked no miracles, but it wasn’t his fault this team collapsed.
GoBraves!
September 29th, 2011
3:17 pm
Lowe will be okay next year. It’s his last year and I don’t think he’s ready to retire after next season.
The Ghost of Fred Haney
September 29th, 2011
3:23 pm
In 1964 we had Do the Freddie, named after the antics of the lead singer of Freddie and the Dreamers. Youngsters, you can look it up!
Today we have the new Do the Fredi, named after the antics of the 2011 Braves manager, or Fail Completely.
Fire Fredi and the Whole Damn Staff
September 29th, 2011
3:24 pm
Fredi and the whole damn staff need to be fired and run out of the city of Atlanta!
Pat McGroin
September 29th, 2011
3:26 pm
Have you thought about voodoo, Jason Heyward’s Gynecologist?
THE CURSE OF DAVID JUSTICE LIVES IN ATL
September 29th, 2011
3:27 pm
FIRE FREDI
AND LONG LIVE THE CURSE OF DAVID JUSTICE,HE TOLD YALL REDNECKS AFTER THE 1995 TITLE,THAT THE BRAVES WOULD NEVER WIN ANOTHER TITLE!
DawgDad
September 29th, 2011
3:27 pm
“Starting Derek Lowe in Game No. 161 was a justifiable choice. (You’d start the rookie Julio Teheran instead? ”
Yes. YES. YES!!! Maybe it wouldn’t have mattered, but there’s NO WAY I’d have run Lowe out there. And having started him, I would have pinch-hit for him in the bottom of the third. Freddi was a shell-shocked manager, sitting on his hands.
How does a manager jump on a hitter for having a bad at-bat when all his “stars” are all up there flailing away wildly? This is baseball, there are fundamental expectations that players need to be called out on when not observed. It’s not OK to give a pass to an Uggla or McCann or Prado or Chipper or AGon just because they’re veterans. They got a pass, and got passed.
Jason A
September 29th, 2011
3:28 pm
The fact that Larry Parrish kept his job through the entire 2011 season is pathetic… the fact that he will be back in 2012 is inexcusable. I’m not saying he has to be fired… just move him from his current position. Other than Chipper and Uggla, this was the most gutless team I have ever seen in any sport… ever. On top of Parrish coming back, if Lowe also comes back, I seriously am starting to think that winning is only their 3rd or 4th priority as a franchise.
Pat McGroin
September 29th, 2011
3:30 pm
David Justice? Curse? LOL
Jerry Willard
September 29th, 2011
3:31 pm
Anybody else just watch Bradley get all tongue-tied on Outside The Lines?
He also pretty much called all of us Braves fans sorry.. That’s cool at least being fans isn’t our job. Your a sorry columinst and always will be..