Interesting Article: It's Okay To Be Critical

[BobbyWoontz]

http://www.ihatejjr.com/content/after-585-games-its-ok-start-questioning-showalter

After 585 games, its OK to start questioning Showalter

By L.E. Miller - Posted on 19 May 2014

This week Buck Showalter managed his 583rd game for the Orioles, surpassing the number of games he managed for the New York Yankees. Last year he passed the 486 games he managed Arizona Diamondbacks, and sometime in August he will surpass the 648 games that he managed for the Texas Rangers.

[wildcard]

I think Buck gets his fair share of criticism. But many times when he doesn't make the move that many of us think he should have made, he has a reason. Saving the pen, a player was not available for one reason of another.

Maybe I will feel differently after this season if the O's do not make the playoffs, but right now I am pretty happy with Buck.

[MrOrange82]

I have a laundry list of examples of mistakes that I think have been made in games or with the lineup, but those individual thoughts aren't important. Every managers makes mistakes, I don't have to prove that.

That blurb highlights everything that's wrong with the blog post. If the author has examples, he should list them. In detail. Furthermore, he should identify similar mistakes scattered throughout Buck's other managerial tenures to show that they're not isolated, unrelated examples, but parts of an overarching pattern of ineffectiveness that ultimately justified Showalter's dismissals from past positions.

Saying "he's been around long enough to criticize" doesn't actually say anything noteworthy. Proving, with facts, that Showalter's shortcomings have prevented his teams from reaching their fullest potentials would be noteworthy. And given the amount of time that people on this board have spent criticizing particular types of moves that Buck seems prone to making, a deeper investigation into whether he's always made such mistakes, and whether he simply might not be equipped to lead the O's to a World Series, could be enlightening.

However, that blog post is not.

[Frobby]

Yeah, nobody around here ever criticizes Buck or second guesses a decision he made...

Look, Buck isn't perfect. But anyone who thinks that Dave Trembley, Sam Perlozzo or Lee Mazzilli could have built what Buck has built in his time here is insane.

[Sanfran327]

Yeah, nobody around here ever criticizes Buck or second guesses a decision he made...

Look, Buck isn't perfect. But anyone who thinks that Dave Trembley, Sam Perlozzo or Lee Mazzilli could have built what Buck has built in his time here is insane.

Which is why he gets so much credit for building the Yankees, Diamondbacks, and Rangers teams. He just couldn't lead them to victory.

I don't know what to make of that. Honestly, two of my favorite teams have supposed "great" head coaches/managers. I don't know if the Orioles will ever win anything meaningful under Showalter, and I don't think the Hokies will find their way back to greatness under Frank Beamer. But both have pretty darn good track records, and are well respected in their current jobs, making them very difficult to remove.

[Can_of_corn]

It's a no no to quote entire pieces.

[MrOrange82]

Yeah, nobody around here ever criticizes Buck or second guesses a decision he made...

Look, Buck isn't perfect. But anyone who thinks that Dave Trembley, Sam Perlozzo or Lee Mazzilli could have built what Buck has built in his time here is insane.

What has Buck built? The O's got off to a hot start with him in 2010, going 34-23 after he took over. The O's followed that up in 2011 by going 69-93. Then they reversed that record in 2012, going 93-69 after DD picked up Chen, MGon, and Hammel (and after Tillman finally began to "realize his potential" by posting a 9-3 mark with a 2.93 ERA over the last couple of months of the season). Despite getting a combined 65 starts from Tommy Hunter, Arrieta, Matusz, and Britton with an ERA over 5.00, the O's made the playoffs thanks to a historic run of good fortune in 1-run and extra inning games...one that ended against the Yankees in the postseason. When that luck...didn't continue in 2013, the O's found themselves back in Earth's orbit, finishing 85-77 and missing the playoffs. Right now, the O's are 20-22, and fangraphs has them projected to go 58-62 the rest of the way, finishing 80-82 overall.

I'm not saying I agree with the last calculation, necessarily, as I doubt that first place in the AL East will wind up being a tie between the Red Sox and Blue Jays at 84-78 apiece. But what has Buck built? What has he done that we can articulate and defend with statistics? Are the Orioles evolving and becoming better under his leadership, or are they regressing?

[weams]

Yeah, nobody around here ever criticizes Buck or second guesses a decision he made...

Look, Buck isn't perfect. But anyone who thinks that Dave Trembley, Sam Perlozzo or Lee Mazzilli could have built what Buck has built in his time here is insane.

Poor Article. It's fair to discus Buck's weakness though. Poor article.

[weams]

It's a no no to quote entire pieces.

Thanks. I took care of the moderation.

[wildcard]

What has Buck built? The O's got off to a hot start with him in 2010, going 34-23 after he took over. The O's followed that up in 2011 by going 69-93. Then they reversed that record in 2012, going 93-69 after DD picked up Chen, MGon, and Hammel (and after Tillman finally began to "realize his potential" by posting a 9-3 mark with a 2.93 ERA over the last couple of months of the season). Despite getting a combined 65 starts from Tommy Hunter, Arrieta, Matusz, and Britton with an ERA over 5.00, the O's made the playoffs thanks to a historic run of good fortune in 1-run and extra inning games...one that ended against the Yankees in the postseason. When that luck...didn't continue in 2013, the O's found themselves back in Earth's orbit, finishing 85-77 and missing the playoffs. Right now, the O's are 20-22, and fangraphs has them projected to go 58-62 the rest of the way, finishing 80-82 overall.

I'm not saying I agree with the last calculation, necessarily, as I doubt that first place in the AL East will wind up being a tie between the Red Sox and Blue Jays at 84-78 apiece. But what has Buck built? What has he done that we can articulate and defend with statistics? Are the Orioles evolving and becoming better under his leadership, or are they regressing?

You have to be kidding. Were you here for the 14 losing seasons? He has taken a team with an owner who trusted no one and turned it into a winning franchise. He has worked hand in hand with a GM to acquire players that have boosted the team. And don't for a minute tell me that player acquisition is all DD. They talk everyday throughout the whole year.

Buck has built a culture where players now say the words that Buck has taught them. Where do you think Adam Jones' "No Excuses" talk comes from. And its not one player its all through the system. Pearce gets DFA'd, becomes a free agent, resigns with the O's, hits the heck out for the ball while Davis is out and now he is out of the lineup but you are not going to here a peep out of him criticizing Buck.

This team is so different from the 14 losing season teams that its not funny. Buck has built as entire winning organization from Angelos on down. That is what he has built.

[weams]

You have to be kidding. Were you here for the 14 losing seasons? He has taken a team with an owner who trust no one and turn it into a winning franchise. He has worked hand in hand with a GM to acquire players that have boosted the team. And don't for a minute tell me that player acquisition is all DD. They talk everyday throughout the whole year.

Buck has built a culture where players now say the words that Buck has taught them. Where do you think Adam Jones' "No Excuses" talk comes from. And its no one player its all through the system. Pearce gets DFA'd, becomes a free agent, resigns with the O's, hits the heck out for the ball while Davis is out and now he out of the lineup but you are not going to here a peep out of him criticizing Buck.

This team is so difference from the 14 losing season teams that is not funny. Buck has built as entire winning organization from Angelos on down. That is what he has built.

I usually don't agree with you so specifically.

[weams]

What has Buck built? The O's got off to a hot start with him in 2010, going 34-23 after he took over. The O's followed that up in 2011 by going 69-93. Then they reversed that record in 2012, going 93-69 after DD picked up Chen, MGon, and Hammel (and after Tillman finally began to "realize his potential" by posting a 9-3 mark with a 2.93 ERA over the last couple of months of the season). Despite getting a combined 65 starts from Tommy Hunter, Arrieta, Matusz, and Britton with an ERA over 5.00, the O's made the playoffs thanks to a historic run of good fortune in 1-run and extra inning games...one that ended against the Yankees in the postseason. When that luck...didn't continue in 2013, the O's found themselves back in Earth's orbit, finishing 85-77 and missing the playoffs. Right now, the O's are 20-22, and fangraphs has them projected to go 58-62 the rest of the way, finishing 80-82 overall.

I'm not saying I agree with the last calculation, necessarily, as I doubt that first place in the AL East will wind up being a tie between the Red Sox and Blue Jays at 84-78 apiece. But what has Buck built? What has he done that we can articulate and defend with statistics? Are the Orioles evolving and becoming better under his leadership, or are they regressing?

The only stat that counts. At. All.

Baltimore Orioles 5 years 303 282 .518 585

We are not losers.

We are Winners.

[Burg]

What has Buck built? The O's got off to a hot start with him in 2010, going 34-23 after he took over. The O's followed that up in 2011 by going 69-93. Then they reversed that record in 2012, going 93-69 after DD picked up Chen, MGon, and Hammel (and after Tillman finally began to "realize his potential" by posting a 9-3 mark with a 2.93 ERA over the last couple of months of the season). Despite getting a combined 65 starts from Tommy Hunter, Arrieta, Matusz, and Britton with an ERA over 5.00, the O's made the playoffs thanks to a historic run of good fortune in 1-run and extra inning games...one that ended against the Yankees in the postseason. When that luck...didn't continue in 2013, the O's found themselves back in Earth's orbit, finishing 85-77 and missing the playoffs. Right now, the O's are 20-22, and fangraphs has them projected to go 58-62 the rest of the way, finishing 80-82 overall.

I'm not saying I agree with the last calculation, necessarily, as I doubt that first place in the AL East will wind up being a tie between the Red Sox and Blue Jays at 84-78 apiece. But what has Buck built? What has he done that we can articulate and defend with statistics? Are the Orioles evolving and becoming better under his leadership, or are they regressing?

You simply cannot be serious. What has Buck built? He has built a winner where once there was a laughingstock. He has brought respectability and accountability back to Baltimore. He has legitimized this franchise.

I am going to write off your post as being contrarian simply to be contrarian because if you are really being serious, I have no words.

[DrungoHazewood]

Which is why he gets so much credit for building the Yankees, Diamondbacks, and Rangers teams. He just couldn't lead them to victory.

I don't know what to make of that. Honestly, two of my favorite teams have supposed "great" head coaches/managers. I don't know if the Orioles will ever win anything meaningful under Showalter, and I don't think the Hokies will find their way back to greatness under Frank Beamer. But both have pretty darn good track records, and are well respected in their current jobs, making them very difficult to remove.

And the odds are quite good that they'll decline, maybe in a serious way, when each of them leave. Many times a coach/manager is fired because they couldn't win the big one, only to find out that their successor(s) couldn't even get to .500. I know I'd rather have pretty good teams that occasionally do really well, as opposed to an ownership group committed to finding a great coach that'll lead us to the promised land by firing the current one every three years.

But then again, I don't root for teams with infinite resources like the Yanks/Sox, ManU, or Alabama, etc so maybe for that type of fan firing the coach repeatedly until they win the championship works for them.

[DrungoHazewood]

But what has Buck built? What has he done that we can articulate and defend with statistics? Are the Orioles evolving and becoming better under his leadership, or are they regressing?

Did you not see 1998-2011?

The baseline winning percentage for a post-Davey, post-embittered, shrinking-payroll Angelos is about 70 wins. Buck is about 15 wins/year better than that.