If Martinez had been fired on May 24, nobody would have thought he got a raw deal.
As it played out, the team picked themselves up off the mat and made the playoffs. Which is all anybody has the right to expect.
So it’s fine to say I’m not sold on him as a manager but the team did respond when it to nut cutting time. I still think he has a long way to go in bullpen management but that’s the hardest part of being a MLB manager. (The pitching coach has to take some blame for dry humping relievers). And he isn’t Matt Williams crappy.
I wonder how much internal pressure managers get? Do the owners or GM's demand certain players get favortism? Do they consider "moneyball" statistics to be the absolute truth? (again) I'll quote Tommy Lasorda... You win 1/3 of games, and lose 1/3 of games. It's the other 1/3rd that make the difference." It's a long season, so I assume that Davey would have to consider that when making decisions. In the reg season, it's not always a "must-win" game. Managing in the postseason must be different
