By Josh:
So in case you don’t have cable TV and couldn’t watch the game, or refused to check Twitter, Facebook, ESPN or any other potential place for people to rant about sports, the Blue Jays won and questionable coaching by Buck Showalter may have helped. Also a stupid Toronto fan threw a beer bottle at an Orioles player.
Blue Jays fans don’t have the best reputation in baseball and it is unfortunate that one fan can make an entire fan base look bad but that is what will happen. It isn’t the first time fans in Toronto have thrown things onto the field and right or wrong that fan base has earned its reputation as one of the worst in terms of respecting the field and the players on the field.
Okay enough of talking about a loser fan, let’s now talk about the other big moment in the game.
Instead of bringing in Zach Britton, the best reliever in MLB this year and possibly the AL Cy Young winner, Buck Showalter went with Ubaldo Jimenez. Put him up against the heart of the Blue Jays lineup and ending up giving up a single, another single and then a three run homerun.
I want to take a look at this coaching decision from both sides of the argument, and then tell you my final opinion.
Argument For Using Jimenez
Britton is the best closer in the game and losing is bad but losing after having the lead in extra innings is worse. I can understand wanting to save Britton until you score a run and then shut down the Blue Jays to win the game. If you don’t pitch Britton you then have to have someone else pitch. I don’t know the Orioles bullpen well enough to know what they had left.
There was a time when Jimenez was one of the best pitchers in the game and Showalter may have been banking on him stepping up for the playoffs and have one solid outing. Pitchers with less talent and history have done it before.
Finally it is one inning. Jimenez is a professional athlete, paid to do one job, get outs. Showalter was asking for 2 outs from Jimenez. He ended up getting none.
Argument For Not Using Jimenez and Using ANYONE ELSE Like Say Britton
Did you see Jimenez’s stats when he came in the game. I did and my first though was oh well that’s the end of the game. I’m too lazy to look it up but it was over 5. As compared to Britton who was at .54. That is 5 whole runs lower than Jimenez. In my awards voting Britton got serious consideration from me for the AL Cy Young.
Britton was the best pitcher on either team, and who would you trust more with one out and two runners on then the very best. Remember a single run ends your season.
Even when you get past the pitching decision you still have to raise the question as to why you don’t choose to walk the basis loaded and create a force at home.
I honestly put this loss on Showalter’s shoulders because in a one game playoff you play your best players. You don’t put in a pitcher and hope he has the ability to step up his performance after a dismal season and get the best players on the opposing team out. If it was the bottom of the order I could understand that more, but not the heart of the order.
The one positive from all of this is that the Texas Rangers vs Toronto Blue Jays series might be the most intense and watched series during the entire playoffs.