One game playoff Monday

[Dante Bichette]

Philly doesn't deserve to be there. Glavine didn't really give up all those runs in 1/3 of an inning against the Marlins, but the umps just made some really bad calls that resulted in 7 unjustified hits.

Oh, well, Philly fan. As a fan, I would rather play you guys. I'm sure the team would prefer going anywhere but to the armpit of America, AKA Philadelphia, but what can you do? You have to play the hand you are dealt.

[hiaspire]

Originally Posted by BigRapidsJackass

You all know I don't like Clint Hurdle, but a guarantee you he will outmanage Charlie Manuel.

People were calling for Manuel to be fired earlier in the year, weren't they? Same with Hurdle for years here. Now they are two of the biggest stories in baseball comebacks in years and the hottest teams in the game.

Just goes to show that you can't get too wrapped up in manager over-analysis. In the end, it is the players on the field that matter so much more.

[BigRapidsJackass]

Armstrong's point yesterday: callers to sports talk shows are actually criticizing Hurdle's in-game moves, not just whining about how the Rockies are a loser franchise.

That means people are actually watching the baseball on the field. They are PAYING ATTENTION

[hiaspire]

Originally Posted by BigRapidsJackass

Armstrong's point yesterday: callers to sports talk shows are actually criticizing Hurdle's in-game moves, not just whining about how the Rockies are a loser franchise.

That means people are actually watching the baseball on the field. They are PAYING ATTENTION

That's great for the casual fans in the city watching more games, but there isn't really a question about active message board posters and whether they are paying attention (at least usually).

We have been paying attention to this team for years. The key, though, is what should be the focus of the attention. What is making the biggest difference? What is a key to improving even beyond where the team is now? We should be beyond just proving to Mr. Armstrong that we watched the game with everyone else.

Somewhat understandably the attention always seems to be pointed at the hated owners, but at least now we should all realize that it is possible to win games on the field doing things the way the Twins & As historically have built steady, under-funded winners (and now Rockies amongst other historic examples). Maybe not preferrable, but certainly possible if you make good baseball decisions about talent. You may still hate them and their fiscal ways, but like always they aren't going anywhere anytime soon so it isn't going to change and at least we know good things on the field are still possible anyway to focus on. It never was "hopeless" but at least now there should be proof of that within the team itself, and remove a barrier some may have had to looking into possibilities on the field with greater attention.

Beyond ownership complaints, putting all the manager's moves into a microscope has been a popular source of attention. We've seen various managers move around from team to team with various levels of success mostly dependent upon the talent in any given place. We've seen managers who were on the hot seat to be fired early in the year turn things around to have some of the hottest teams in the game. We see "great" managers sitting at home now and "horrible" ones with some of the best chances of advancing in the playoffs with their teams playing great baseball. No matter what the manager move, it is still up to the players on the field to execute when they are up. I'm certainly not one to say that managers and coaches have no impact, as I think coaching plays a big role in overall development of a player, but I think that big picture improvements with your players outweight small in-game decisions as the players decide things on the field and there isn't a monumental difference between most managers anyway.

Any attention to the game from casual fans is fantastic as noted since it wasn't there before, but all the attention focused on a specific manager move in the middle of an 11-game win streak or something doesn't seem to be the proper attention to the situation and biggest impacts that are making the real difference that is worth paying attention to.

[BigRapidsJackass]

What if Hurdle hadn't gotten the extension on opening day?

He probably would've been fired in late May.

Would the Rox have played better or worse?

I say they would've played about the same. We'd all be calling the new manager a "genius" for turning the team around.

You're right, Aspire. The manager doesn't make much of a difference.

[hiaspire]

Originally Posted by BigRapidsJackass

I say they would've played about the same. We'd all be calling the new manager a "genius" for turning the team around.

You're right, Aspire. The manager doesn't make much of a difference.

And whatever we would have said about the new guy positively should also be said about the old guy since that actually happend with him.

Sometimes it can make a difference in terms of shaking things up. When we fired Bell and Hurdle initially took over, the team played lights out for a long stretch. You see other examples of organizational shakeups waking everybody up and creating change. That usually isn't lasting, though. The Nuggets can hire George Karl, for example, and see an immediate turn around in the team energy mid-season but it didn't necessarily carry into the next season. Those emotional shifts are usually short-term.

Hurdle certainly isn't one of the rare elite managers who are above everyone else, but he's not all that different from the majority of guys and replacement choices who go from team to team doing very similar things to the dugout across the diamond every night.

He is more hands-on in terms of player development with his hitting coach background I think, and the entire coaching staff should get their credit for seeing this group of inexperienced youngsters turn into winners under their watchful coaching eyes. That's the top priority when you are trying to rebuild with young players, and they get more than passing marks there. That's what has made the difference. That's what the attention should be on IMO as they successfully navigate the rebuilding plan. For every little coaching decision we focus on instead here, the same thing is being done most nights from the other side and most of these things aren't 100% right or wrong but often judgement calls with a lot of grey area where it comes down to player execution.