Is 2008 Yost's last shot? Latest: What are we doing? I am getting worried! (reply #212)

[adambr2]

So did it not work because Turnbow is incapable of achieving the goal? Early this year with Turnbow's arm healthy (go back and read Turnbow's take on the end of last year in today's JS) there will be too many fans booing Turnbow to the detriment of this team. Should Yost have known Turnbow was done, it was his last game of the year, we would have been better off but I wonder what the odds are of getting Shumaker, Cairo, and Stinnett out. How many times have those three gotten on in a row? If it was never, since they are all pretty weak hitters then isn't the percentage there that Turnbow was put into a good situation?

 

We will see how the rested Turnbow performs this year which will be intersesting seeing how the fans treat him. If he fails it's Yost's fault and if he succeeds Turnbow is back! It's not easy being a manager on this board.

 

No, I did not say it did not work because Turnbow is not capable of achieving the goal. Again, it was a bad idea because Turnbow was generally not successful in that situation a great percentage of the time last season. Just like we wouldn't bring Shouse in to face a string of righties in a close game, we shouldn't bring Turnbow in during the middle of an inning with inherited runners because he generally struggles.

 

Couple other points --

 

You are acting like they were scraping the bottom of the barrel and sending pitchers out there to face Turnbow. I will grant you that Stinnett is garbage, but Schumaker and Ludwick are at least servicable hitters.

 

Also -- it does not matter if Turnbow is facing Albert Pujols or Jennifer Love Hewitt, they're going to reach base if Turnbow suddenly loses it and can't find the strikezone whatsoever. That is a tendency that he had shown in the past with inherited runners, and that is exactly what happened in the 8th.

[iluvlamp]

Deadspin preview of the Brewers. Must read for the anti-Neddites

[TooLiveBrew]

They captured Ned's pissed-off tone quite well. Funny read.

 

 

"The fact is, our bullpen could blow a hundred games this year and we'd still win the division. We still have math on our side."

 

I don't think that particular (real-world, not this fictional one) quote will ever let Ned relax. What an odd thing to say.

[sgtcluels]

Funny, good find Lamp.

[mikerollins]

I couldn't find a "Ned Yost" thread going back a few pages..(shocking..i Know!) so feel free to move this or merge it appropriately.

 

I just saw this article in the JS this morning and this comment made me laugh outloud....

 

If a meteor hits the planet, icebergs melt or gasoline reaches Euro prices, Interpol will have its first lead. Oh, yes, Yost will be blamed.

 

It just reminded me of 79 IGT's last year and made me giggle.

Thought I'd share.

March 31st can't come soon enough!!!

[endaround]

You mean the Mike (God my parents really hated me) Hunt column of Yost maintaining clubhouse respect that had absolutely no quotes from anyone near the clubhouse? Yep I read it.

[Fatter than Joey]

I read this somewhere..

 

FACT: NASCAR uses 200,000 gallons of gas in a year -- just at the races.

 

FACT: Ned Yost is a bad MLB manager and should resign his post immediately.

 

FACT: Ned Yost likes NASCAR.

 

FACT: Ned Yost could use his inside contacts to work on a NASCAR pitcrew.

 

FACT: Said pitcrew/team would get Yosted when Ned leaves the tires on too long, or puts petro in the tailpipe.

 

FACT: Crashes and NASCAR deaths would skyrocket past the current, 2.5 deaths per NASCAR event.

 

FACT: Congress would shut down NASCAR.

 

FACT: NASCAR would no longer need gas, thus increasing the overall supply.

 

FACT: As supply increases demand will decrease along with the price per gallon.

 

CONCLUSION: Not only is Yost screwing up the Brewers, but he is inflating gas prices as well.

[BrewCrewForever]

That is pretty funny FTJ, I never knew Ned Yost was responsible for the high gas prices all by himself.

[craigharmann]

I didn't know there was 2.5 deaths per NASCAR event! That should be investigated!!

[mikerollins]

This is the thread I was looking for. I just didn't go back far enough.

 

As far as "Ned's Last Stand"...I would say if they stay healthy and don't

1.win 90+ games and fall short of the Cubs

OR

2. win the division (if it only takes 85 or 86 to do so)

 

Then it might be time to go in a different direction, but I have no reason to believe that the above won't be accomplished. I think Yost has done a great job since taking over the 106 loss mess, but doing a "great job" only takes you so far without the wins and post seasons to show for it.

 

This is the year!

[adambr2]

Now that it sounds like Yost has pretty much decided to bat Kendall 9th, I give him some credit for having the balls to go a little bit against conventional thinking to try this. Especially since he's going to be absolutely raked over the coals if the offense struggles in the first month or two, even if it's not because of the lineup order.

[Eddiehitsthefoulpole]

At the end of last season we fired Nick Leyva as our third base coach. Apparently it was his fault that we couldn't score enough runs. I guess Ned viewed making three outs on the bases a game as the good old days. I started out this month reading about how we were going to hit the pitcher 8th. I have always thought that was crazy. It has never worked for a long period of time when the Cardinals tried it. Then I read that we are batting Ryan Braun behind Prince so that Ryan can steal bases. I think that he would be the first person in the history of baseball to bat clean-up because he can steal bases. I am not saying that hitting Braun 4th is a bad idea, I am just saying that his reason for doing seems irrelevent to that spot in the batting order. Now I know we want to make lots of outs on the bases. Then I see that we want to bat Mike Cameron 2nd. The 2nd spot calls for a good contact guy who know how to work the count, that sure sounds like Mike Cameron. Why do I get the feeling that Prince is going to come up a lot with bases empty? Today I read that it appears that Carlos Villanueva is going to start the season in the minors. I am sure that he would really benefit from the minors. He was already dominating AAA two years ago. He has also outpitched ALL the other starters in Spring training. He and Yo kept us in the race last year. I guess that Ned puts more value in the way Dave Bush gets guys out after the other team takes a 5-0 lead in the second. I also guess that Ned values the way Claudio makes it out the 6th inning once a month. Ned must also like burning out the bullpen the way we did last year.

I wanted Ned fired last year. What he is saying this year scares me. Why can't we just use a normal batting order, start our best starting pitchers, and use our relievers in a way that makes sense to the masses? Instead, it looks to me that we will start the year dealing with streakiness and excuses. At the end of the year Manager Simmons will have Kendall batting 8th, Villy in the rotation, and the Brewers in the race. While we always talk about the losses in the August and September, the losses in April and May count the same. NED, SET THE TEAM UP RIGHT FROM THE START, WILL YOU?

I want to be the first to call for his firing, already. I know that people will jump on me for saying this. I am old enough to know what it looks like when the train comes off the track. It is obvious that this is the same Ned who messed up last year's team. He does not manage up to the caliber of his talent!

[bball123h2]

Given last year's start, it seems odd to question Ned's "setting up" of the team. Yea, he's tinkering around with some ideas, but it IS spring training, and spring training is the time to tinker. Yea, having a cleanup hitter that can also swipe bags is odd, but if he can do it, what's the problem? It's not like "being protected" (if you believe that sort of thing) by Hart is a bad thing.

 

I'm certainly not against fighting the baseball norm, so long is there is good reason to do it. We won't be batting the pitcher 8th every game, but rather when the situation calls for it, according to the information they have (probably dependent on SP/lineup/pitcher ability to hit).

 

Also, I don't tend to put much stock in spring training stats. If they were an accurate representation of the truth, Gabe Gross would be Babe Ruth II, minus the pitching ability. Every team is tinkering, so the stats aren't very reflective of the upcoming season.

[endaround]

Cameron is likely to have the highest OBP of anyone not named Weeks, Hart, Braun and Fielder. And if Cameron's K's mean no hit and runs all the better.

[splitterpfj]

I agree with some of what you're saying, there's no way Villanueva doesn't belong in the rotation, but I do think Cameron is the best choice this team has for the second spot in the lineup. The point there is OBP, which Cameron actually does better than a lot of our guys, strikeouts or not. I think you'll see just the opposite of your prediction for Fielder, he'll hit with plenty of baserunners this year.

 

 

The only other decent choice to bat second would be Hart, but then you'd have no 5 hitter, and Braun would never see a fastball.

[endaround]

Of course Yost was talking about hitting Hall 5th....

[bigredrobbo]

 

 

I want to be the first to call for his (Yost's) firing, already. I know that people will jump on me for saying this. I am old enough to know what it looks like when the train comes off the track. It is obvious that this is the same Ned who messed up last year's team. He does not manage up to the caliber of his talent!

 

First? Hardly. There's one of those ticket machines like you get at the Post Office and you have ticket number 246, my friend.

 

Let's just see how some of the lineup changes do before we all starting playing at Chicken Little. Just maybe, people who post on internet message boards don't actually know everything there is to know about the game...

[endaround]

Of course not all people who post on message boards, just the ones who agree with me.

[Brian the Automator]

I want to be the first to call for his firing, already. I know that people will jump on me for saying this. I am old enough to know what it looks like when the train comes off the track. It is obvious that this is the same Ned who messed up last year's team. He does not manage up to the caliber of his talent!

Honestly, this thread looks like a vent to me. I'm fine with talking about any of the points mentioned in your original post, but talking about all of them would be very scattershot.

[mark brouhard is number on]

Count me in for being absolutely disgusted as well if Villanueva is not on the team when the season starts. even a person who has no clue about the game of baseball can see he is easily one of our 5 best starters. isn't that the point of the game? to have your best players out there who give you the best chance to win day in and day out. to even contemplate sending him to the minors is absurd. what more does the guy need to do?

[Patrick425]

I don't understand why Hart would not bat 2nd. It's befuddling.

[Oldcity]

Hart doesn't have the plate discipline that Cameron has yet. Plus he probably has more power than Cameron. I'd prefer Braun or Fielder hitting second, but after that my preference would be Cameron second and Hart fifth.

 

To be clear, I don't want Braun second because of his plate discipline (he has even less than Hart at this point). I just think if you are going to hit Kendall eighth, it makes sense to move Fielder and Braun up a spot.

[Fatter than Joey]

From this article... I think batting TGJ 2nd in any scenario is reason for concern.

 

 

"It's safe to say that Kendall will bat ninth in the early part of the season. Manager Ned Yost is still trying to decide on a few spots in the lineup. It looks like Gwynn may bat second until Mike Cameron returns from his 25-game suspension.

 

Yost is considering J.J. Hardy for that spot, but Hardy is working his way back from a flu-like illness that cost him a week of playing time and about 10 pounds from his already thin frame.

 

Yost also isn't sure whether he'll bat Bill Hall or Corey Hart fifth behind Ryan Braun. Other than that, though, the lineup is pretty much set. "

[Patrick425]

Hart doesn't have the plate discipline that Cameron has yet.

Ok, I guess that makes some sense.

[AJAY]

Today I read that it appears that Carlos Villanueva is going to start the season in the minors. I am sure that he would really benefit from the minors. He was already dominating AAA two years ago. He has also outpitched ALL the other starters in Spring training. He and Yo kept us in the race last year

 

 

They might as well start selling playoff tickets at Wrigley Field. It's clear our management doesn't have a clue. Our fans always seem to have a better understanding of our players than the guys who are paid to be experts. We all knew that Chad Moeller was awful, and yet Ned Yost would never pinch hit for him when the game was on the line. We all know when Derrick Turnbow is on the verge of a metldown, but Ned never sees it coming. Now, it's the same thing with the whole Villanueva situation.

 

Why does this franchise seem to hate the concept of winning? I just don't get it. It's like they seem to get pleasure in doing things that make us scratch our heads and fall short of our ultimate goals.

 

When we all are watching the Cubs play in October, are we supposed to look back and say "Yippee, we missed the playoffs for the 26th year in a row, but hey, at least we have great "depth" in our rotation"?

 

Give me a break.

 

There ought to be Congressional hearings on this.