A positive Dusty thread

[cincrazy]

This series, and in particular this game tonight, was a shining example of what Dusty does best. He left Homer in for a big 8th, stuck with him when the first two guys got on, and Homer came through. That can't help but build his confidence, right? What a huge moment for Bailey. Ends up getting the W as well.

Also, he gives Scotty the start tonight. Continues to stick by him, when most of us wouldn't. And Rolen rewarded that faith with the game-winning hit.

Say what you will about the man and his strategic ability (I know I've said my share), but tonight was a great example of why his players love to play for him.

[Nathan]

Could've gone either way, really. Had Bailey blown up at that point, and Rolen not gotten that single up the middle, and the Cards won, I'm sure this place would've exploded negatively as opposed to positively. That's what winning does.

Great win, great series!

[paulrichjr]

I have to give Dusty credit. I would have pulled Homer for sure. He had faith in him and wow did he deliver. I would have never started Rolen. I would have probabably pitched someone besides Chapman because he usually doesn't do as well pitching 3 straight games. Dusty tonight we celebrate your genius. Tomorrow we curse you.

[757690]

I predict this will be a very short thread, lol.

[Homer Bailey]

Just because the results worked out for Dusty doesn't make it a good decision. I'm not even saying necessarily it was a bad decision to leave Homer in, but more often then not, this sort of event just reinforces Dusty's poor decision making because he can point and say "well it worked that time."

The decision to let Rolen hit, who is one of the worst hitters on the Reds, if not the worst, was obviously a poor decision. That being said, Dusty would never disrespect Rolen and pinch hit for him, and I can't really blame him for that. But the fact that Rolen got a hit does not make it a good (baseball) decision to have let him him.

Tonight was not Dusty "at his best". Tonight was Dusty when everything worked out for him.

[westofyou]

Even after a sweep against the Cardinals Dusty can't catch a break here, it's almost comical how he has become the clown in the dunking booth at this carnival.

[Big Klu]

Even after a sweep against the Cardinals Dusty can't catch a break here, it's almost comical how he has become the clown in the dunking booth at this carnival.

I'm with you. Dusty either makes bad decisions or lucky decisions. There are no other options.

[powersackers]

The last two negative posts are basically saying luck and bad decisions are responsible for the 4th best record in baseball. 6 wins in a row and first place in a tight division and not one ounce of credit is given to the man who pulls the strings? Laughable.

[Brutus]

Just because the results worked out for Dusty doesn't make it a good decision. I'm not even saying necessarily it was a bad decision to leave Homer in, but more often then not, this sort of event just reinforces Dusty's poor decision making because he can point and say "well it worked that time."

The decision to let Rolen hit, who is one of the worst hitters on the Reds, if not the worst, was obviously a poor decision. That being said, Dusty would never disrespect Rolen and pinch hit for him, and I can't really blame him for that. But the fact that Rolen got a hit does not make it a good (baseball) decision to have let him him.

Tonight was not Dusty "at his best". Tonight was Dusty when everything worked out for him.

I think some would suggest tonight is why Dusty is better than he's given credit for. It's these types of decisions that reinforce why players love playing for him so much, because he's loyal and respectful and that often squeezes out the production they're capable of.

I'm not going to lie, I had a terrible feeling about Homer going out for the 8th inning. But to be fair, he was coming off a quick inning and was only at 90 pitches, so it did somewhat make sense for him to go back out. I just didn't expect it to end well. Nonetheless, it did work out and Dusty showed a lot of faith in Homer and Homer delivered.

I disagree about Rolen completely. I want to get Frazier more at-bats, but I don't think you yank Rolen in that situation.

[AtomicDumpling]

Even after a sweep against the Cardinals Dusty can't catch a break here, it's almost comical how he has become the clown in the dunking booth at this carnival.

It's not like he just became the clown this weekend. He has been considered by many if not most people around baseball as a clown since long before he even came to Cincinnati, so a sweep of the 3rd place Cardinals is not likely to change that. One series is not going to change peoples' opinions of the guy after several years of watching him.

As I have said before I think he is an average manager. He does some things well and some things poorly. He hasn't been the disaster that many people expected when he first came here. He is a good old-fashioned "by the book" manager. If you like that style of manager then you will like Dusty. If you would like to see some innovation then you are going to be disappointed.

Dusty's moves have certainly worked out well lately in this six game winning streak.

[Brutus]

It's not like he just became the clown this weekend. He has been considered by many if not most people around baseball as a clown since long before he even came to Cincinnati, so a sweep of the 3rd place Cardinals is not likely to change that. One series is not going to change peoples' opinions of the guy after several years of watching him.

As I have said before I think he is an average manager. He does some things well and some things poorly. He hasn't been the disaster that many people expected when he first came here. He is a good old-fashioned "by the book" manager. If you like that style of manager then you will like Dusty. If you would like to see some innovation then you are going to be disappointed.

Dusty's moves have certainly worked out well lately in this six game winning streak.

Who is this "most" you speak of? He's in the top 80 all-time in managerial win percentage which is in the upper 90 percentile of all managers. Clearly he's done something right.

Clowns don't typically last 20+ years with a winning record.

[Tom Servo]

If you would like to see some innovation then you are going to be disappointed.

As are the fans of almost every single MLB team.

[MikeS21]

It all boils down to one thing: Dusty will have a major league managerial job as long as he wishes to manage. Even if the Reds did dump him, another team would offer him a manager's position next year, with three or four more teams standing in line to talk to him.

And meanwhile, none of Dusty's critics here on RedsZone, who second guess every decision he makes, will ever get a phone call asking them to manage ANY pro team. Perhaps we ought to just "keep our mouths shut" and leave the managing "to the professionals."

[cumberlandreds]

The Reds have and could do much worse than Dusty. Some things he does I don't like but overall he's better than average manager. He's done quite well for 20 years. Bad managers don't stick around for 20 years.

I'll add to mine in saying Dusty is really good at handling the personalities on a team. In the 21st century that is very important. You can't treat everyone the same like in days gone by. Those manager that do aren't around very long. I do like the way he brings along young players. He normally doesn't throw them into the water to sink or swim. He will also stick with them a little longer than most. Which in most cases is good.

[AtomicDumpling]

Who is this "most" you speak of? He's in the top 80 all-time in managerial win percentage which is in the upper 90 percentile of all managers. Clearly he's done something right.

Clowns don't typically last 20+ years with a winning record.

My post was addressing the statement someone made that people were forming the opinion that Dusty was a clown based on this weekend's sweep of the Cardinals. My point was that the folks who think Dusty is a clown had formed that opinion long before this weekend. I wasn't defending the notion that he is a clown. As I very clearly stated in my earlier post that you misunderstood, Dusty is an average, ho-hum, middle of the road manager in my opinion.

The "most" I speak of is of course the majority of pundits and insiders in baseball. Surely this is not news to you. They may be right or they may be wrong but that is the prevailing opinion around baseball. This didn't just crop up this weekend.

Not too hard to have a good record when you have been fortunate enough to manage the most dominant player in the major leagues since Babe Ruth. Maybe you think Dusty Baker is the reason Barry Bonds was so good?

Was Joe Torre a great manager or was he just along for the ride on those $200 million payroll Yankees teams? Winning percentage only tells a small part of the story when judging a manager.

Dusty has been fortunate enough to manage some star-studded teams that under-performed expectations and generated him a lot of bad press. I think much of it was undeserved, but it has definitely affected his reputation around the league.

I didn't say my opinion is that Dusty is a clown, quite the contrary. I said he was average. I am not enthused about settling for average. I think the Reds should try to get one of the best managers.