The Wisdom of Charlie Manuel

In last night's game againt the Nationals, the Phillies were ahead 8-4 in the top of the 9th with Brad Lidge in to close it out. Lidge had apparently struck out the first batter but the umpire ruled a foul tip not held by the catcher. Charlie Manuel came out of the dugout to protest. He argued heatedly and at length, perhaps as long as 10 minutes, and was ultimately ejected. Now one must question the wisdom of this. It was a cool, extremely damp night. Brad Lidge was obviously sharp and in good rhythm. Why would you risk his losing that rhythm and perhaps tightening up with a long delay. The Phils had a four run lead and there was nobody on base. They were in no need for any added motivation. There was really no urgency over this particular call. Yes, Lidge proceeded to retire the side in order with two strike outs. He obviously had suffered no ill effects from the break in the action. But was it worth the risk?

Overplaying the Percentages?

In last Friday's game against the Marlins, Phillies manager Charlie Manuel started Greg Dobbs at third base. Dobbs, a left-handed batter, has had a record-breaking season as a pinch hitter and leads the team in batting average, but he only starts against right-handed pitching as was the case on this September evening. In his first at-bat, Dobbs homered to right. In his second at-bat, he hit a long double to left center. In his third at-bat, well actually he didn't have a third at-bat. With the Phils down, and a southpaw in for Florida, Manuel pinch hit for Dobbs with right-handed batter Mike Cerverak, a utility infielder who has spent most of the season in the minors. Now the Phillies are ever so close to clinching the playoffs and surely Charlie Manuel deserves some credit for that, but isn't this carrying percentage baseball a little too far?

The Suicide Squeeze

Milwaukee at Philadelphia in an important late-season game. The Phils had a 3-1 lead going into the bottom of the 7th but their 7th and 8th inning relief pitching has been increasingly unreliable. An insurance run or two would be most welcome so they could hand a lead to their indomitable closer, Brad Lidge, in the 9th inning.

In the 7th, the Phillies' fleet center fielder, Shane Victorino, was on second with no outs. So far so good. Pedro Feliz was next up. He is an inconsistent hitter with power, prone to the strike out. Somewhat surprisingly he bunted and the sacrifice was successful. Victorino advanced to third base, now with one out. The next batter was Carlos Ruiz. Ruiz is an excellent defensive catcher with a batting average barely above .200 all season. However, in recent weeks, his hitting has been showing signs of life. On his way to the plate, Ruiz matter-of-factly asked a teammate the sign for the squeeze. Manager Charlie Manuel, who has not called for the squeeze all year, heard this exchange and was somewhat bemused.

The relief pitcher for the Brewers was right-hander Carlos Villanueva who was pitching from the windup with Victorino on third. So the stars were aligned for a successful squeeze: fast runner on third, a right-handed batter to block the catcher's view, a pitcher using the windup, a good bunter, and presumably the element of surprise. A left-handed pitcher would have been even better, but what does it matter because Charlie Manuel NEVER squeezes anyway?

Ruiz worked the count to 2 and 1, and one of the balls was a pitchout - so much for the element of surprise. Villanueva then started into his windup. Victorino held his ground momentarily but then broke hard for the plate. In the meantime, Ruiz did not show bunt until the right-hander released the pitch. It was too late for the Brewers to react. Ruiz's bunt was soft and up the third base line, much better than was needed. Victorino scored easily, the Phils had their insurance run, and they went on to win. And Charlie Manuel was still bemused.

Baseball's suicide squeeze - a beautiful thing.