I'm on record of not liking Bell's moves to use these role playing minor leaguers so much and making the actual big league team unavailable for the rest of the game, but this game is more on the players than Bell.
- Pinch Running for Votto in the 8th inning. He was unlikely to come up again. Turns out he did, but that wasn't the same as PR for Winker in the 6th when he was sure to come up again. This wasn't a horrible move in spite of how the game ended.
- Bunting Barnhart wasn't a terrible idea either. I hate the bunt, but it is defensible in some situations. Those situations usually involve taking the bat out of a hitters hands who is likely to make and out anyway, and that is definitely Barnhart now, and trying to avoid the DP. That was the clear intent. Barnhart failed.
- PR Lorenzen for VanMeter. This seemed unnecessary. It removed VanMeter from the game and left the team with no one to play with Colon due up soon. I'd have probably PH for Colon anyhow and used Senzel in the IF and left Lorenzen in the game to play CF, but this wasn't as bad as other moves in other games.
On the player side there are a lot more issues:
- Miley was clearly rusty and not very good in his short time out there.
- Mahle with a poor outing allowing 3 runs in 3 and a third.
- The staff in general kept allowing the Royals to add on runs and walked 8 guys to help them do it.
- Senzel with a huge fail striking out with a runner on 3B and one out. He's not hitting much in general and his OPS in below .700 Peraza territory now.
- Suarez with another o-fer and killing rallies daily.
- Castellanos didn't hit today and he's been carrying them
- Barnhart's bunt was the scariest thing I ever saw since I went to the first "Jaws" movie. Of course, later I looked at his OPS and that's even scarier.
Good games from Winker, Shogo, Galvis, Garrett and Jones today. VanMeter's HR was a nice surprise, but I'd still banish him to Prasco when Moose is back. I'd also send Colon and Jankowski down. I don't even care if they replace them. I'd probably add Aquino though.
