9/19 News, Links, Discussion: Braves-Marlins, Draftstreet Offer, Janish/Simmons Updates
September 19, 2012 at 1:30 pm by David Lee under Atlanta Braves
Draftstreet Offer
The Draftstreet freeroll offer is back. It’s a $150 prize pool and 10 places paid, and it’s for the games this Friday (9/21). Follow this link to play.
Game 3 vs. Marlins
The Marlins overtook the Braves in extra innings Tuesday as Jose Reyes blooped a single in the 10th off Cory Gearrin to win. Brian McCann provided the big hit in the ninth inning with a two-run double to tie the game.
The rubber game features Josh Johnson and Kris Medlen. I’ve written in Johnson’s past outings against the Braves that his slider isn’t biting quite as much as in previous years, and a 20.5% strikeout rate is slightly below his career average. But he’s maintaining a very good swinging strike rate and is keeping the ball in the park, resulting in a 3.81 ERA and 3.36 FIP.
After a human outing, Medlen returned to his magical ways against the Nationals last time out, striking out a career-high 13 while allowing one run over seven innings, lowering his ERA to 1.62 while upping his strikeout percentage to 23%.
Game time is 7:10. Atlanta: SportSouth. Miami: Fox Sports Florida.
MLB.com preview
STATS preview
More Links
Braves.com recap for Tuesday’s loss.
AJC quotes following Tuesday’s loss. Fredi Gonzalez on Nathan Eovaldi: “He was throwing 97, 98 miles an hour in the eighth inning, and he was commanding all of his breaking pitches. He was tough. He made a pitch on Danny that was 2-2 pitch or a 3-2 pitch that was 98 on the black. No chance. And he did that all night.”
Paul Janish dislocated his shoulder in the ninth inning Tuesday while diving for a ball. He was forced to have someone pop it back in, while he said he usually can do it himself. But X-rays appeared clean and Janish was optimistic of returning soon.
Fredi remains hopeful Andrelton Simmons will return today, so it sounds like his jammed shoulder isn’t enough of an issue to keep him out more than a few days.
David Schoenfield tells us who is projected to start a potential wild card game for each team, with Kris Medlen lining up for the Braves, assuming all remains on track.
Check us out on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter: @Ben_Duronio, @fjrabon, @David11Lee, @EthanPurser.
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Should probably not let Gearrin pitch to Reyes, since Reyes has around a 40% chance of getting a game-winning hit in that situation. Gearrin’s fault for hitting the putrid Gorkys and putting a runner in scoring position, though.
I have to place blame in two places for that situation. Obviously, first and foremost is Gearrin for walking and then hitting a batter. But then, I also blame Fredi for not already having another reliever warming up in case Gearrin got in a jam.
If he’s trying for the division, he has to be able to think multiple steps ahead.
Think…MULTIPLE steps ahead??
Okay… maybe one step ahead.
Yeah probably not a good idea to have a righty specialist in the game at the time when O’Flaherty and Kimbrel are on the bench. Fredi was fortunate that they got out of the 9th. I’m sure it was just pure luck that the two lefties he faced in the 10th got hits though.
When they left Gearrin in to pitch to Reyes, I figured they would just throw some pitches in the dirt or way outside and see if he swung. If not, just put him on. After two way outside pitches, the plan looked like it was being carried out, but then he started throwing strikes to him. After being lucky enough to run the count full, why the hell did he ever have permission to throw a strike to Reyes? With a runner on second, Reyes’ run doesn’t matter one bit. GET THE BAT OUT OF HIS HANDS! The blame shouldn’t be on Gearrin, or even the fact that Gearrin was left in, rather the blame should be on Fredi for not having his pitcher put Reyes on and pitch to Carlos Lee’s fat ass. (How does his helmet fit on his head?)
Bringing in Kimbrel was the other option. It’s embarrassing watching a manager be so clueless out there. Something about Fredi’s face, just makes me want to sock him right in the suckhole.
So your plan is to put the winning run another 90 feet closer, where a single goes from probable to definitely scoring the runner, or the runner could score on a wild pitch, balk, etc. Don’t call Fredi an idiot and then offer a dumber solution.
At some point you have to tip your cap to the other team. Brantley had a heck of an at bat against Gearrin, fouling off good pitch after good pitch, and worked a walk. Hitting Hernandez definitely hurt, but the pitch Reyes hit was not a strike and if it falls two feet further or stays in the air 1 second longer, the ball is caught and the game goes to the 11th. Just because Fredi makes (many) bad decisions does not mean that every time a different decision could have been made that means he is a complete moron with absolutely no baseball sense and should be fired, punched, killed, or any of the other ridiculous things some of you all suggest on here.
Walking Reyes was not a great option, but allowing Gearrin to pitch to him was the worst option of all. You turn Reyes into a .400+ hitter with Gearrin’s splits. Again we have a 10-inning game in which we failed to use our best pitcher because we were “saving” him. This is a game we should tend to win after tying it in the 9th.
If you’re going to defend Fredi, don’t do it by attacking a strawman argument. Sure, Fredi might not be a “complete moron” and nobody should do violence to Fredi, but that’s a different question from whether he’s costing us wins. The undeniable fact is that Fredi consistently makes suboptimal decisions that cost us win probability. Over the course of a season, that is probably worth a couple of wins, though it’s hard to quantify, I admit. If we’re still 6 games back of the Nats when the season ends, I’ll say it didn’t matter for the regular season, but if we’re within 2, I think an above average manager gets us the division title.
I would have been fine with this articulation of the argument. But just to say, “He didn’t walk him? What an idiot, I want to punch that jerk in the face” is just irritating. I totally agree that he is not the best manager and does things to hurt the team. It just seems like the default for commenters on this blog is to totally blow out of proportion and say ridiculous things about Fredi.
You bring in a lefty to face Reyes or you walk him. With the speed at 2nd anything other than an infield hit wins the game. You DO NOT allow SIDE ARMING RIGHTY to face a slap hitting left handed batter. That’s just plain,unadulterated stupidity.
Gearrin should be a ROOGY right now anyway…
Not to nitpick, but Reyes is a switch hitter with almost even splits. In Fredi’s mind, the garbled information being produced by the hamster in the wheel is saying “durrRR Reyes hit swich so put in lefti n he gonna jus hit from rite side.”
But then anyone with a level of intelligence higher than a canine would argue “but Frediot, Gearrin would be facing Reyes the lefty, and he’s historically weak against the good ones. Shouldn’t you have had a reliever ready to go who is effective against both sides of the plate? There are a plethora of options!”
Frediot: ::blank stare::
Fredi’s mistake was letting Gearrin face Reyes. Someone else, preferably Kimbrel should have been brought in as soon as he beaned Gorkeys. Fredi flipping players like crazy too early and then having Janish go out, hurt that we got Hinske in the game, Hinske in LF and Prado/Uggla middle is a way weaker defense than I like in extras. Fredi for the most part does an average managerial job but occasionally he does things that really hurt.
Also, pitch selection falls on the shoulders of Ross/Gearrin not Fredi. Fredi’s only input would have been to yell out for an intentional walk, which he did not do.
Overall people here seem to be a little overly criticle of Fredi most of the time but not in this case, Fredi hurt us this game. Not saying the outcome would have changed but it did not help with him making deciions.
Kimbrel was being rested last night so he come appear tonight to shake-off the rust from being rested.
Why is tipping your cap a better solution than trying to get an out? There were two outs, and the runners were going on contact. Brantley was basically home by the time Reyes’ hit dropped. They would have scored on just about every hit, unless he lined it directly at Jason Heyward. The chances of getting Carlos Lee to produce an out is much better than getting Reyes to hit a line drive to Heyward, so why wouldn’t you put the better hitter on? Carlos Lee (who I was surprised to see actually has reverse splits) producing an out is also much more likely than a balk, wild pitch, and line drive to Heyward, combined. I understand it was close and we had a shot. But tipping your cap doesn’t win games, which is why you take the field.
And has no one on here seen Stepbrothers? The thing about punching Fredi is from a movie. Lighten up a little. Fredi is a bad manager and has definitely cost this team games. If Kimbrel pitched in this game, it might still be going on. But his players produced a bad situation, and he did nothing to help his players get out of it.
Goddamn, Kris Medlen. I think he’s ready to go for the playoff game.
Screw it, ill say it. Medlen pitches this way for his last 3 starts of the season, give him the Cy Young. He’s the best pitcher in the National League and that’s who the award is supposed to go to.
At what point do can you no longer argue SSS for medlen and claim that he is an ace with his plus plus location and pluses erythema else.
At what point do can you no longer argue SSS for medlen and claim that he is an ace with his plus plus location and pluses everything else.