Fire Matt Williams! (2015) - Standard Decision.

[whytev]

Gio had two bad starts in a row with Lobatón. Ramos has 2 homers this week. I'm fine with it.

Escobar cost us more playing 3rd yesterday than hitting. He partly put us in that situation of having to come back so hard. Everyone says he is a great teammate, but you have to wonder how he wrangled his way out of playing 2nd. It's a whole different game with him on 2nd but Rendon is better than him at 3rd and was amazing when Escobar ran into that guy and had to sit. I wish Williams had just stuck to the plan and moved him back to second.

[Minty Fresh]

The guy isn't that smart, cmon man

No way. Yuni would have to be benched if he went off the rails like that.

possible (maybe likely), and if the team was performing up to expectations, no one would care about that call. When things went well, he got a pass from most fans, now things aren't and he's going to get killed for every bad move; that's just how it is being a manager- undeserved credit balanced by undeserved blame

I mean, look, I'm securely in the Fire MW camp - I hated the hiring of him in the first place - but it's not like Escobar has the best plate discipline in the history of the game.

[nicefellow31]

Looks like tomorrow has turned into next year.

Yes.  I think all those tomorrows are gone.  It's going to take an epic collapse by the Amazings for us to win now.  Hopefully next year, the team will remember that all those "it's early" losses actually count in the standings. 

[BrandonK]

Gio had two bad starts in a row with Lobatón. Ramos has 2 homers this week. I'm fine with it.

Escobar cost us more playing 3rd yesterday than hitting. He partly put us in that situation of having to come back so hard. Everyone says he is a great teammate, but you have to wonder how he wrangled his way out of playing 2nd. It's a whole different game with him on 2nd but Rendon is better than him at 3rd and was amazing when Escobar ran into that guy and had to sit. I wish Williams had just stuck to the plan and moved him back to second.

If I remember right, he wasn't playing 2nd very well in ST, then Rendon was out, so he stayed there. I'd like the switch, but MW won't push it now.

[BeltwayBaseball]

If I remember right, he wasn't playing 2nd very well in ST, then Rendon was out, so he stayed there. I'd like the switch, but MW won't push it now.

He got hurt playing 2nd, mildly pulled his oblique doing all the turns opposite of what he (and his body) were used to. He was learning it on the fly. He can spend all offseason and ST working on it for next year.

[BrandonK]

"You've got to win games you're supposed to win, there's no question about it," Mets manager Terry Collins said

Matty would say something along the lines of: "they're a good team, we'll get 'em tomorrow, our team is good." Bum. No urgency

[NatsGirl]

This year is 90 percent in the players to me.

Agreed, I'm not crazy about Matt either and hope they replace him in the offseason, but I'm pretty sure Desmond has been personally responsible for several losses early in the season which are now hurting us.  If we had a different shortstop at the beginning of the season, I don't think we'd be 6.5 games back to the Mets.

[PC]

The problem with giving players a certain percentage of the blame is that it's tough to distinguish their play alone with them repeatedly put in a position to fail by the manager.  I actually believe just having Matt Williams as manager made some players worse.

[NatsGirl]

The problem with giving players a certain percentage of the blame is that it's tough to distinguish their play alone with them repeatedly put in a position to fail by the manager.  I actually believe just having Matt Williams as manager made some players worse.

True.  Desi was clearly completely out of it to start the year off and yet was started night after night.  Yeah he pulled through for some games, but for the most part he was dragging down the team.  I don't buy the whole "playing through his funk" thing that Matt seems to like to have these guys do.  They can work through their issues in AAA.

[HalfSmokes]

any player blame should also be shared by the GM (who chooses the players) and the Manager (who trots them out every day). Players have no say in where or when they play- it's the manager and the GM who decide those things

[tswphoto]

New Boz column:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/nationals/each-season-has-an-autopsy-heres-an-early-version-for-the-nationals/2015/08/27/466bc710-4cde-11e5-bfb9-9736d04fc8e4_story.html

[varoadking]

...I'm pretty sure Desmond has been personally responsible for several losses early in the season which are now hurting us.

I stopped counting at 6.  There have been more since...

[mitlen]

I stopped counting at 6.  There have been more since...

Wow, six?    You da man.

[varoadking]

New Boz column:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/nationals/each-season-has-an-autopsy-heres-an-early-version-for-the-nationals/2015/08/27/466bc710-4cde-11e5-bfb9-9736d04fc8e4_story.html

“I always say, ‘In the end, you are your record.’ This August has been my worst month ever” as a general manager."

PC would say we are better than the Mets.  PC should be the GM...

[varoadking]

Wow, six?    You da man.

It was easy...3 x 2.  If I had to count past 9, I'd have been lost... 

[PC]

“I always say, ‘In the end, you are your record.’ This August has been my worst month ever” as a general manager."

PC would say we are better than the Mets.  PC should be the GM...

Well, I never said Matt Williams was a better manager than Terry Collins!....and I think Terry Collins is a terrible manager.

[varoadking]

Well, I never said Matt Williams was a better manager than Terry Collins!....and I think Terry Collins is a terrible manager.

You said we are better than the Mets despite the record.  Ergo, you should be our GM...Rizzo is clearly not thinking things thru... 

[mitlen]

It was easy...3 x 2.  If I had to count past 9, I'd have been lost... 

You must have a college degree.   

[Kevrock]

This strays into "standard decision" territory. I would hope not, but I would also hope that there would be situations where you DO give a hard take sign.

One of those situations would be 3-0 to a slow GB hitter with no power, with runners on 1st and 3rd and down by 1.

If there's no one on base, or 2 outs and a runner on first or something? I think it's fine to give him the option.

I'm seriously wondering if it's ever done by anyone ever. This gets brought up all the time on this site, but this isn't High School. The players are smart enough to know they have an implied take or at most "one pitch one spot". I assume that it's just on the player to know and execute this. I just doubt they have take signs and Yunel got some back ass green light sign from Williams.

[whytev]

I'm seriously wondering if it's ever done by anyone ever. This gets brought up all the time on this site, but this isn't High School. The players are smart enough to know they have an implied take or at most "one pitch one spot". I assume that it's just on the player to know and execute this. I just doubt they have take signs and Yunel got some back ass green light sign from Williams.

I think you have to play for the sac fly there and if it drops, so much the better.

Zimmerman was more qualified to get that done. And with the bases full they'd have to pitch to him.

Escobar is a line drive hitter.

Escobar should have held on one more pitch. Standard decision

[Ray D]

The players are smart enough to know they have an implied take or at most "one pitch one spot". I assume that it's just on the player to know and execute this.

This is what's so disturbing about the matter.  This isn't on Williams, it's on Escobar for swinging at the damn pitch.  Clearly that wasn't the one pitch -  one spot he was looking for.  That was a pitch designed to induce a doubleplay.
On a good hittable pitch, a good contact controlled swing would have had a good chance of resulting in a fly ball, which would have tied the game, which would have been better than a walk to load the bases and lead to a doubleplay.

[Natsinpwc]

This is what's so disturbing about the matter.  This isn't on Williams, it's on Escobar for swinging at the damn pitch.  Clearly that wasn't the one pitch -  one spot he was looking for.  That was a pitch designed to induce a doubleplay.
On a good hittable pitch, a good contact controlled swing would have had a good chance of resulting in a fly ball, which would have tied the game, which would have been better than a walk to load the bases and lead to a doubleplay.

I agree--he was way overanxious; as someone else noted if he had just gone the opposite way would have driven in the run.  Or he could have waited for another pitch.

[NJ Ave]

The players are smart enough

I think the fact that people still assume this about our players is funny.

Just letting our guys go out and "let their talent shine", without any plan whatsoever, is why we're going home prematurely for the 4th straight year...

[NJ Ave]

I mean, jesus, "the players are smart enough" is soooooooo close to "standard decision".

You think a player is supposed to know what the run expectancies are of every potential outcome of his at bat, on every pitch?

HELL NO. That's the manager's job, with his coaches and analytics staff.

I want our fricking team doing something more than "looking for a pitch to hit". LOOKING FOR A FRICKING PITCH TO HIT IS EXACTLY WHY WE ARE WHERE WE ARE.

[Ray D]

I mean, jesus, "the players are smart enough" is soooooooo close to "standard decision".

You think a player is supposed to know what the run expectancies are of every potential outcome of his at bat, on every pitch?

HELL NO. That's the manager's job, with his coaches and analytics staff.

I want our fricking team doing something more than "looking for a pitch to hit". LOOKING FOR A FRICKING PITCH TO HIT IS EXACTLY WHY WE ARE WHERE WE ARE.

First of all "smart enough" doesn't mean "smart".  We're talking about smart enough to know that if you swing on 3-0 it better be a perfect pitch to hit.  For christ sake, you learn that at age 12, so yes I think they are "smart enough" to know that.  Nothing to do with expectancies of every potential outcome, etc.   Just about 3-0, that's all.

Second, I don't agree with you about "looking for a pitch". Williams is saying "swing at fastballs".  That translates roughly to "look for a fastball on the first pitch. If you get one (over the plate) swing. If it's offspeed, don't swing".  I'm not trying to defend Williams, but I think that's good advice.

  And on hitters counts (2-0, 3-1), "looking for a pitch" is the right thing to do.  I don't know of any coach who would tell you otherwise.