This is for all the Joe West haters out there
But hey, I'm just protecting the "bad ones" by defending the guyHe's the Crew Chief of a postseason crew for **** good reason. Congrats to him for this effort! This is about as perfect as a human being calling pitches can be.
And before this is called "fake news" here's an explanation on how this result is calculated.
I can't say that I necessarily agree with Counsell's strategy last night. Sometimes I think he tries to be too clever for the game.
I think Counsell and his staff know his resources better than anyone else, especially fans or media who didn't know the Brewers existed before the last 2 weeks of the season. This is not the first time he's started a guy for one batter, then taken him out. Like he said, if he had Randy Johnson, he'd use traditional measures.. but that's not who he has.
Well he cost the Astros two runs last night by deciding the players have a right to a ball in the stands, so he’s 0% on fan interference plays.
I guess what I really meant to say is I'm not a fan of a manager trying to change the character of his team in the post-season. If you're a home run hitting team in the regular season, that's who you are. Trying to play as a "small ball" team starting in a five or seven game series doesn't typically work.
Okay sure SJHovey.
Brewers top seven games started: 152
Innings pitched: 818.0
Record: 51-45 (56 no decisions)
Red Sox top seven games started: 148
Innings pitched: 882.1
Record: 67-37 (44 no decisions)
Dodgers top seven games started: 156
Innings pitched: 910.0
Record: 60-41 (55 no decisions)
Astros top seven games started: 160
Innings pitched: 974.1
Record: 74-35 (51 no decisions)
Yep. Brewers sure won the old fashioned way throwing their starters out there. Wait, what's that? Our starters pitched minimum 65 innings less than Boston (almost 100 innings less than LA) and have a .500 record?
This postseason *IS* how Counsell has managed all year.
The theory is not any different than the way he managed the team all season. Every pitcher is considered an "out getter". Not starters, not relievers. Anyone, anytime. They're all out getters. The staff said it a billion times during the course of the season. It might get applied differently during the playoffs because the playoffs ARE different. The travel is different, the rest days are different, and the intensity and workload are different. All of those things have a huge impact on the pitching staff.
I just saw the replay. Not sure how that's not home run. Fans have a right to the ball as soon as it clears the plane of the fence. It did.
If you were trying to make your point with your statistics, I don't think you really understand math, or baseball.
According to your numbers, Brewers starters lasted on average between 5 1/3 and 5 1/2 innings per start. The Astros starters lasted 6 innings per start. Boston and LA starters lasted between 5 2/3 and 6 innings per start. So, basically what you are saying is that because the LA, Boston and Houston starters lasted, on average, one or two whole outs per game more than the Brewer's starters that optimum strategy suggests pulling the starter after the lead-off hitter on the chance you might get some better match-ups?
I'm not saying that there's a moneyball stat that shows pulling out starter after five pitches is optimum. (That's because Counsell suckered the Dodgers into setting their lineup for Miley and then matched up a better pitcher against their bats. (R/L matchups))
What I am saying is that short outings have been the Brewers motives all season. There hasn't been some grand change of plan Counsell *just* had a lightbulb go off above his head in deciding to play like this. He'll put whoever in that can pitch.
I think Counsell and his staff know his resources better than anyone else, especially fans or media who didn't know the Brewers existed before the last 2 weeks of the season. This is not the first time he's started a guy for one batter, then taken him out. Like he said, if he had Randy Johnson, he'd use traditional measures.. but that's not who he has.
I read that he did this stunt to get LA to build their batting lineup around the MIL pitcher, and then boom, after the switch, messes up LAD's lineup/preparation.