Larry Dierker is better than Bob Brenly

I really couldn't tell you who I thought was a good manager. For one, I don't watch enough baseball to make that call, and I'm not going to let ESPN or SI tell me. Two, I honestly don't think that managing a baseball team is that hard. The hardest thing, IMO, is keeping control of the clubhouse...something most managers are capable of doing. The game to game calling of plays, to me, could be done by most people with half a baseball mind. It doesn't take a genius to read a stat page that says so and so hits .140 against this pitcher, let's pinch hit him. Most baseball fans know when it's a good time to shift the infield or put a hit and run in play. Most baseball fans know that you shouldn't let your closer throw 62 pitches, and then throw him out there the next night...especially when each pitch is pressure packed.

Coaching, especially in baseball, has and always will be the position that takes the blame. If it wasn't, we wouldn't have coaching in the first place. Their job is to call plays, make sure those plays are executed, and motivate players, among other things. People always say that the coaches called the right game, but the players didn't execute. Well, who's fault is that? A coaches job is to ensure that players are prepared physically and mentally. Players do deserve criticism as well, but coaching, by nature, will always be the one to blame when things go wrong. And things nearly went disastrously wrong for the Diamondbacks because of Brenly.

 

<B>I really couldn't tell you who I thought was a good manager. For one, I don't watch enough baseball to make that call, and I'm not going to let ESPN or SI tell me. </B>

Hmm... I'm guessing if we watched enough teams, we'd find mistakes by every manager, meaning every manager in the majors is bad.

<B>People always say that the coaches called the right game, but the players didn't execute. Well, who's fault is that? A coaches job is to ensure that players are prepared physically and mentally. </B>

Well, then when the players DO execute, that means the coaches/manager did a good job, right? Given that Brenly's team obviously executed the necessary plays (playing good defense, etc) over the course of the playoffs, it seems to me that would make him a good manager.

<B>And things nearly went disastrously wrong for the Diamondbacks because of Brenly.</B>

Seems to me this is mostly hindsight.

1. Pulling Schilling in game 4.

If he didn't pull him and they lost that game or Game #6, then Shilling wouldn't have been available for Game #7. Then people would have criticized that move. Why wouldn't you trust your star closer -- who had also pitched 6 innings of 1-hit baseball in the postseason and was very fresh? He also got 5 strikeouts in 2 innings in that game.

2. Letting Kim throw 62 pitches in game 4.

Kim is not your "normal" closer. He routinely works 2+ innings, and often throws 50+ pitches. He pitched over 100 innings this year, near the top of the relief pitching charts.

3. Putting in a reliever who threw 62 pitches the night before, never mind the mental disadvantage after the night before.

Kim has also come in several nights in a row this season, with no problems. Randy Johnson pitched a night after throwing 100 pitches with no problems. Rivera pitched in 3 straight games. Kim has pitched 4 days in a row at least twice this season.

As for the mental disadvantage, if there was a Game #8, do you think Joe Torre shouldn't have pitched Mariano Rivera? If the Astros had a 1-run lead in Game #2, would you have preferred bringing in a mediocre pitcher (Jackson, Villone) over Wagner since he got bombed in Game #1? It seems to me you pitch your best players if they are capable.

4. Not pinch hitting for Schilling tonight.

Why? Shilling had one bad inning. He also had one in the 6th inning in his last start and went on to pitch well after that. Why should he have clearly been pulled here but not be pulled in Game #4? Is it better to go with the guy who dominated all night except for one inning, or take a chance on a pitcher who threw 100+ pitches the night before?

These are all easy to say they were bad decisions after the fact, but unless we know what would have happened otherwise, the answers aren't quite so clear.

If you don't pull Shilling in Game #4 and he gives up runs, people will say he was obviously tiring and should have been pulled. If Kim gets one more out in Game #5, everyone is saying it was a great move to bring him right back into the mix. If Shilling is pinch hit for and RJ sucks, everyone would say "Shilling shouldn't have been pulled".

Bottom line, to me, is that all the decisions as a whole worked out for the DBacks and Brenly has to get some of the credit.

EDIT: PS - I'm not saying these were all good decisions, but they are made far worse by the fact that they didn't work out, and I don't think they were as clearcut as they are being made out to be. Lots of people -- myself included -- thought pitching Shilling in Game #4 was a bad idea, but that worked out very well by making him available for Game #7. Sure, they might have won regardless, but they also might not have. It seems we quickly forget the "good" decisions when criticizing managers.

 

Brenly did 2 things great all postseason: 1) picking the starting players game by game, and 2), most importantly, setting the tone for his players by being consistently positive and relaxed. I think Joe Torre does all these things, and is an even better game tactician (another debate).

Brenly made quite a few bad tactical moves with his pitchers however, and not just in the WS. But specifically in the WS, I think there were a number of boneheaded moves. I would have let Schilling start the 8th in game 4 like he did in game 7. One, he might finish it, or two even if he only gets an extra out or two Kim would come in against fewer batters-- both reducing his pitches and reducing the Yankee's chances to read his unorthodox delivery. Nonetheless, though I would have kept Schilling in a little longer in game 4, I think it was defensable to go with Kim in the 8th and 9th--the guy was having a good post season run except for some shaky pitching against the Cards early in that series, so you still have a great chance for a win and give Schilling a better chance to recover for game 7. However, once Kim had blown the save it would seem to be a nobrainer to take him out of that game however. Further, in Game 5 there is no way I would have gone back to Kim again-he had given up 2 gopher balls in his last two innings and pitched more the previous night than he had all year. Dumb move. Personally, I would have had the Unit out there to secure the 3-2 series lead then worry about getting 1 more victory, but that me. Regardless, it should have been someone other than Kim relieving Batista, or perhaps relief by committee (Morgan, Swindell, eveyone else). I also agree it was pretty stupid not to pinch hit for Schilling in the 7th inining because he had already given up the lead and had been giving up multiple hard hit balls--some when for hits and some went for almost hits. You are basically given up a chance to get a head in a tie game by having him lead off as well. Also, I watched the tape and Schilling did not have the command he had early, many of the hard hit balls had moved on the plate from where Miller was setting up--that was not happening earlier in the game. That said, the pitch Soriano hit was a very good pitch. It is remarkable that Soriano stayed alive that at bat (one pitch he fouled off with 2 strikes hit the ground and bat at about the same time) and golfed a splitter just BELOW the knees over the fence. You just have to credit Soriano for that at bat. Given Brely was open to the idea of pitching the Unit in game 7 as well, it also didn't make sense for him to be in there about the 6th inning for sure. Albie Lopez (who isn't good but who isn't as bad as his record indicates) wouldn't even had given up that lead.

So Yes, Brenly made a number of boneheaded moves with his pitchers. You would think as a former catcher he would know better, maybe he was just a little too close to his pitchers. But I can't fault too much else. Most important was that he played aggressively on the bases and set the tone by being positive and relaxed. Those are things Dirker never has done for his players and IMO why they have been such EASY teams to beat in the playoffs. Interestingly, the #1 team the DBacks feared this season was the Stros (they said this in the Pheonix paper). Just goes to show you they never had to play the Stros in the playoffs where their players and their manager are tighter than a frogs kiester.

And BTW the Stros RJ team was far better on paper than this Dbacks team. The only advantage this Dbacks team on paper had was the #2 starter. They probably had equal #1's and equal (good) defense, with the strong having far superior offensive players (hitters and speed), far better bullpen and more solid 3rd and 4th starters. The difference in results has a lot to do with the managers, it is not like RJ and Stros pitching staff didn't pitch well that year. They blew it on offense and the manager set the tone for how they would play offensively.