What did DT do wrong tonight?

[snatch311]

Branyan has struck out 154 times in 354 career at bats against lefthanders.

Sherrill has struck out 136 lefties in 101.1 career innings against them.

Best reliever. Biggest Spot. Best Matchup.

[LookitsPuck]

They might be good, but I agreed with DT here.

This is another thing that many on here have been clamoring for, Johnson going more than one inning with the game on the line. This could have been all moot, if the ball went 5 feet farther. It could have been a catch by Jones or walkoff for the number 9 hitter for the M's.

I don't disagree with Trembley's move to keep Johnson in. I think he's been pitching very well as of late, and I like that he gave him another inning today. The ball found a hole, and Beltre has been either hitting grounders and/or swinging at terrible pitches all year.

There's plenty more to disagree with Trembley tonight. Keeping Johnson in the 9th is not one of them.

[snatch311]

They might be good, but I agreed with DT here.

This is another thing that many on here have been clamoring for, Johnson going more than one inning with the game on the line. This could have been all moot, if the ball went 5 feet farther. It could have been a catch by Jones or walkoff for the number 9 hitter for the M's.

I said in the game thread about 365 times.

"Johnson until Ichiro, then Sherrill."

Do you think Johnson could've been tired after throwing 25+ pitches?

[elsid]

Do you think Johnson could've been tired after throwing 25+ pitches?

Yep.

I don't disagree with Trembley's move to keep Johnson in. I think he's been pitching very well as of late, and I like that he gave him another inning today. The ball found a hole, and Beltre has been either hitting grounders and/or swinging at terrible pitches all year.

There's plenty more to disagree with Trembley tonight. Keeping Johnson in the 9th is not one of them.

I am not saying that was a problem. I agreed with DT's decision for the 9th.

Also, many people were asking about Baez warming up in the 7th. He was going to come in if Bergesen got into trouble. Otherwise, he was going to be the extra inning guy, coming in, in the 10th.

DT has been warming up several guys that have not come into games. I can name 4 occasions in the past 10-12 days (8 on the season), where my brother warmed up and didn't come in. Those take a toll on guys as well. Baez has done it quite a few times, as has Walker.

[LookitsPuck]

Yep.

I am not saying that was a problem. I agreed with DT's decision for the 9th.

Also, many people were asking about Baez warming up in the 7th. He was going to come in if Bergesen got into trouble. Otherwise, he was going to be the extra inning guy, coming in, in the 10th.

DT has been warming up several guys that have not come into games. I can name 4 occasions in the past 10-12 days (8 on the season), where my brother warmed up and didn't come in. Those take a toll on guys as well. Baez has done it quite a few times, as has Walker.

Yeah, and I don't like them one bit. If anything, I'd have preferred Baez come in, since he's already been warmed up. But that's not a stab at Trembley for bringing in Johnson. I'm just saying.

[snatch311]

Yeah, and I don't like them one bit. If anything, I'd have preferred Baez come in, since he's already been warmed up. But that's not a stab at Trembley for bringing in Johnson. I'm just saying.

Baez couldn't have gotten out the AAA guys at the bottom of the lineup for an inning? Radhames Liz would've had a decent shot against those guys for one inning.

[LookitsPuck]

Baez couldn't have gotten out the AAA guys at the bottom of the lineup for an inning? Radhames Liz would've had a decent shot against those guys for one inning.

Agreed. Except maybe Liz.

[RShack]

For everybody who's complaining about sending Huff with Mora up, at least get your mind right about what the issues are. Go back and read the conversation between ccbird and elsid (between posts 578 and 586). Then, at least you'll know what you're talking about. You can look at it either way and have whatever opinion you want, but many people commenting on it don't even know what the issues are and don't see why it's complicated. Instead, they just see Huff getting thrown out and think that's all they need to know. Well, that's not all you need to know, so go read those few posts and learn something.

Aside from the hit-and-run stuff (which I am ambivalent about, I can see it either way), I liked the way DT stuck with the kid-P when it was balls-to-the-wall time. I also liked the way he kept JJ in for the 9th because he was planning on using George after we got the lead in extra innings. I liked the way he walked Ichiro and Branyan to load the bases for Beltre. IMO, that was both ballsy and correct. If the OF wall hadn't shown up about 2 feet too soon, AJ would've caught that triple and we wouldn't have been in the jam. Once we were in it, DT and JJ did the right thing. If the dang GB had gone just about anywhere else, it would've been a DP and we would've got out of it with a chip on our shoulder.

The blatant problem tonight was guys getting picked off. That's not even base-running, it's more like base-standing or base-leaning. WhatsHisName has a good move. No excuse for it, but it was a perfect example of how the problem in SEA was execution. We can make it complicated if we want, but it boils down to not hitting when it counted. In general, if you don't get hits when it counts more than the other team does, you're gonna lose. The last couple games, the M's were slightly less-bad about hitting when it counts than we were. That's what it really comes down to.

Great pitching though. People need to see this. We're getting good pitching, and we're getting it from both the SP's and the BP (of which we shall pretend Walker is now a Member Emeritus). This fact is great news. Just very recently, nobody thought we were gonna get that. But we are. We know the team will hit overall, the SP is the iffy part. It's looking better and better, and we're seeing that ahead of schedule. It won't stay that way, there will be ups and downs, but at least the SP is showing up. Go take a chill pill and reflect on how huge that is.

[snatch311]

If anyone on this site can give me one good reason why Trembley didn't run Pie for Huff, I will donate $10 to the charity of their choice.

[now]

If anyone on this site can give me one good reason why Trembley didn't run Pie for Huff, I will donate $10 to the charity of their choice.

Not saying it's a good reason, but I sense that Trembley is reluctant to use his bench out of fear of being caught short-handed later - call it the third catcher (or thirteenth pitcher) syndrome.

[JTrea81]

If anyone on this site can give me one good reason why Trembley didn't run Pie for Huff, I will donate $10 to the charity of their choice.

The only thing I can think of is that Trembley wanted to leave Huff in for his defense in a close game.

Huff is a better defender than Wigginton, but still...

[sector7g]

Personally I didn't have a problem with walking the bases loaded after the triple. You have to set up the force on every base (especially home) with less than 2 outs and a runner on third. I think most managers make that call and it makes sense to me, plus JJ to Beltre was a good match up for the situation.

What is frustrating though is that we're not halfway through the season and Huff has been caught stealing 5 times. 5 freaking times already!! In the previous 3 years he's been caught a grand total of once. At least tonight it was on a 3-2 pitch and not the damn 3-1 hit and run Trembley usually calls.

I don't think Aubrey decided this was the year he breaks out his running skills, it's on the coaching staff for sending him time after time on failed hit and runs. That move has it's place but DT completely over uses it to the point that all the opposition know it's coming. Time to learn from our mistakes.

[RShack]

If anyone on this site can give me one good reason why Trembley didn't run Pie for Huff, I will donate $10 to the charity of their choice.

Managers are generally disinclined to remove their clean-up hitter late in a tie game.

[snatch311]

Managers are generally disinclined to remove their clean-up hitter late in a tie game.

So, the logic was (and I'm asking this seriously):

1. Don't bunt Mora, because we're not playing for one run.

2. Don't run Pie, because it could go to extras.

3. Send Huff, because?

[DrungoHazewood]

So, the logic was (and I'm asking this seriously):

1. Don't bunt Mora, because we're not playing for one run.

2. Don't run Pie, because it could go to extras.

3. Send Huff, because?

The evidence appears to support the idea that Trembley doesn't believe or doesn't care about the true (and rather large) costs of being caught stealing versus the relatively slight benefits of a stolen base or a successful hit and run.

Instead of a steal being worth, say, 1/3 of a run and a caught costing maybe 2/3rds it seems Trembley values them the other way around.