Dusty/Price Bullpen Usage

[REDREAD]

Since we are talking about the last game of the Cubs series..

Doesn't Dusty/Price get some credit for getting 4 scoreless innings out of Partish?

How about using Simon and Parra well in the 7th inning?

By the time Broxton came in, the Reds were kind of screwed..no matter what they did
(Dusty did ride Partish as long as he could, and seemed to take him out at the right time).

If Chapman had gone in first (and Broxton held back).. how long do you let Chapman go? You let him go 2 innings, does he need extra rest?
Seems logical since Brox was only good for one inning to go ahead and let him do it.

I'm glad we weren't forced to use Arroyo or another starter in relief.. Dusty probably is too, since Harang badmouthed him after volunteering to do it in that infamous game.

And LeCure will work out of this rough patch.. Dusty really has to let him work though it.

[Donder]

Since we are talking about the last game of the Cubs series..

Doesn't Dusty/Price get some credit for getting 4 scoreless innings out of Partish?

How about using Simon and Parra well in the 7th inning?

By the time Broxton came in, the Reds were kind of screwed..no matter what they did
(Dusty did ride Partish as long as he could, and seemed to take him out at the right time).

If Chapman had gone in first (and Broxton held back).. how long do you let Chapman go? You let him go 2 innings, does he need extra rest?
Seems logical since Brox was only good for one inning to go ahead and let him do it.

I'm glad we weren't forced to use Arroyo or another starter in relief.. Dusty probably is too, since Harang badmouthed him after volunteering to do it in that infamous game.

And LeCure will work out of this rough patch.. Dusty really has to let him work though it.

I agree entirely. Sure in hindsight knowing it went 14 you wish Simon went two innings, but he was running his best options out there to keep the lead. I would have brought in Chapman before Broxton but assuming he didn't give up a run you still need to debate bringing him out again or using Broxton anyway. I started getting real nervous about seeing Arroyo yesterday and someone from AAA tonight.

[Kc61]

For those of you that graded them as a b, what would it take to make it an A?

A bit more flexibility and less rigidity. Understandable in regular season. Less understandable in playoffs.

[RedFanAlways1966]

I agree entirely. Sure in hindsight knowing it went 14 you wish Simon went two innings, but he was running his best options out there to keep the lead. I would have brought in Chapman before Broxton but assuming he didn't give up a run you still need to debate bringing him out again or using Broxton anyway. I started getting real nervous about seeing Arroyo yesterday and someone from AAA tonight.

Yep. And to REDREAD. Hindsight is always 20-20 and fans question things lol. What if the game goes 17 or more innings (it has happened a lot in MLB lately)? Stick with AC for how long? Bring a starter (Arroyo?) into the game? Then we have multiple people questioning Dusty if they lose and especially if: (1) AC stays in too long risking injury/etc (2) a starter (Harang II) gets injured. Tough job, MLB manager, But the nature of the beast. Always has been.

Tough loss. But I will not fault Dusty for that game. 8 innings of offensive-suck (if you will) lost that game. Sam LeCure gets 15% (has to) of the blame. Not Dusty for bringing him in the game, oh no. Mat Latos gets 8% of the blame for an avg outing (6IP, 4ER, 8H), Broxton gets 5% of the blame and not more for even having to be in this game (see lack of offense). That leaves 72% to dole out. Well, nature of the beast, Dusty AND coaches get 8% from me (they aren't making those 24 outs w/out a run). 64% left... here you go offense. The offense... against Villanueva, Russell, Marmol, Parker and Rondon. Holy non-threatening BP (OK, Gregg threw 1IP). Some may not admit it, but they have not heard of some of these guys. And this BP shut 'em down.

Eh, one game. If this team loses the division by 1 game. I am not blaming this game NOR the decision making. Be way more to it than just 1 game in June. They all count, but all teams suffer games like this. I won't hold it against the offense b/c they have good games too. Move on! There are 162 of them and these things happen. And baseball fans discuss it... that is what draws us here. But Dusty did not lose that game with his bullpen usage.

[mth123]

I gave him a B because there are times where I wish he would have brought Chapman in earlier in one of these extra inning games. I don't like seeing the last man in the bullpen pitching before Chapman before on opprotunity that may never prevent itself.

Other than that, I don't have very many complaints.

I think this is where I'm at, but voted C. Marshall out and Broxton hurting and less relaiable than what was planned as a late inning guy has Dusty at a big disadvantage. I like Lecure and think Hoover has promise, but having those guys for the middle and not the high leverage end of game roles is why this pen looked so good on paper before the season.

It's a long race and Dusty is trying to win the iditarod with one of his best dogs on the shelf and another on three legs. Like it or not, a bullpen is usually only as good as its back-end and 2 of those 3 guys aren't performing for reasons beyond Dusty's control.

[Raisor]

I just looked through the game logs. Since the end of may last year chapman has appeared in the 8th twice.

[Griffey012]

I gave him a B, and pretty much agree spot on with Rick's assessment. I think we just have different grading scales in all honesty. To get an A I would like to see a few more 4 and 5 out saves from Chapman, but I will let it slide a bit this early in the season. If push comes to shove and we need to win a playoff game or a big game late in the season we will see Chapman pitch 6 outs. If I didn't think this then I would grade a C. I know a win now is as important as a win in early September, but it is a marathon, not a sprint.

Aside from that, I think Dusty is good at not making rash decisions with his guys. But he also is not afraid to promote guys into a bigger role, see Ondrusek, Hoover, LeCure, Simon, etc. If a guy continues to get his job done he will get more important jobs in the future.

Lastly, why is there so much debate about Thursday's game and Dusty's management of the bullpen? If you never score runs in extra innings you are going to lose eventually. The bullpen did a great job, the hitting failed us. Jockey Chapman, Broxton, Partch, or whoever and we still don't score a run.

[LeDoux]

I am really surprised by the poll results so far. Just to be clear, the grades are based upon the standard bell curve?

[757690]

Definitely Dusty's weakest aspect of managing.

I understand the value of players pitching in set roles, but like any manager of anything, one must adapt and adjust in extraordinary circumstances. Dusty has proven time and time again, that he refuses to stray from a the rigid roles that he sets up, no matter the situation.

Marshall's injury is a perfect example. When a player gets hurt, it makes sense to adjust the other players roles. But Dusty preferred to keep everyone in the established roles, and just use LeCure and Broxton to cover the innings lost by Marshall. We all saw the results of that.

Extra inning games are also problematic for Dusty and his style of management. In extreme situations, like extra innings, you need to adjust, be creative. But Dusty just sticks to the same game plan, no matter what.

Overall, I don't think it matters that much. Sure we see that it has cost the Reds a few games, but we don't know how many games sticking to rigid roles has helped them win.