And of course the A's decide to play like trash against the Rangers then again looks like the Angels and Twins will catch the Stros! I'm so glad basketball is right around the corner
I agree. I hate scoreboard watching and relying on others to do our own job. But Kluber still didn't have to be a bum...dude gave up more runs today than he did the past 3 games vs the Twins.
It's amazing how unlikely playoffs look right now. Just a month ago it seemed like such a sure thing.
This has truly been one of the most deflating stretches I have ever been a fan of. We are basically still in control of our path to the playoffs, but it sure doesn't feel that way. By any measure of the preseason expectations, this has been a successful year. This possible collapse does nothing to dampen my outlook on our long term success. Having said that, missing the playoffs after being in control for so long would be a major drag.
If the Astros complete the collapse and miss the playoffs, then my opinion is you have to fire Hinch. He's ultimately accountable and his reliever pitching moves in September have been dicey at times. He keeps going back to what isn't working and his response in post-game is usually something like "well...so-and-so has done well for us this season" and "I'd make that same move again". Then, he will go on about how we left too many men on base. He's like a broken record that keeps playing the same tune over and over knowing that tune doesn't play.
You don't fire a manager who has his team in contention ahead of schedule. If we somehow pull out of this tailspin and make the postseason, he's gonna win manager of the year, and it won't be a close vote. Even if we do finish the collapse he's most certainly not on the hot seat, nor should he be. Every relief pitchers except Gregorson has blow leads in the last month. Neshek has been the worst offender, but Qualls, Harris and Fields have melted down as well on multiple occasions. Regardless of who he calls on, if they fail he gets blamed.
So, does Hinch get any credit for getting them into this position to begin with or does he just get the blame for them possibly not coming through in September?
"If the players are good enough to win, only the manager can bring them down to losing levels." Silly.
When every reliever you have is sucking at the same time, all reliever moves will seem dicey. He's tried every combination of relievers in critical situations, and they've ALL failed (except Gregerson). It's easy to second guess them every day, but people will say "oh, he should have put in X". The next day, he puts in X in a similar situation, and he fails too. If seems you're suggesting that Hinch would have been better off having the team mediocre all season long so they wouldn't have had a collapse - in that case, he keeps his job because why would you fire a first year manager that did a decent job? What kind of an incentive structure is that?
If he had been, it probably would have been his turn to fail. And then people would ask why we brought our closer in to a position he's not used to (8th inning, people on base) and asked him to get 5 outs.
Agree, but if he blew it, the "Gregerson sucks" crowd would have shown back up, and Hinch still would have been roasted.
Why Carter did not start yesterday? Why Gregerson did not pitch in the 8th? Hinch was outcoached by a great manager
So, we've now come to the conclusion that every loss his on Hinch being out-smarted... and every win was despite of Hinch. This is about as accurate as you saying you wouldn't be coming back here.
"Why Carter did not start yesterday". Woah, never thought I'd hear that Spoiler Yes I know he has hit better of late
