I agree—there weren’t any great options in the 7th inning. And even if they got out of it relatively unscathed, there was a decent chance that someone else would have blown it in the 8th or 9th. Even minor injuries take a toll, so the Royals will have to overcome that. Fortunately, they have a bit of a cushion.
I think Q had two choices to start the bottom of the 7th: Leave in Wacha or bring in Stratton. I'm guessing that he hoped Wacha could get through the inning unscathed and then maybe Erceg for two innings? At any rate, the results probably would have been the same had he gone to Stratton there.
Imagine the howls had he brought in Stratton to protect that lead. I don’t think he would lean on Erceg for two innings just because the games are still coming fast and furious with the four in Houston. Although I suppose if he’s used for two innings on Wednesday and unavailable on Thursday, he could still pitch in two (or maybe three) games in Houston.
Bullpen management is exhausting, isn’t it? Nice that Quatraro is more than capable handling that.
I think Q made the right call with what he had available but, with hindsight being 20-20, since Long was unavailable and he wanted to avoid using Bubic or Lynch, maybe bringing Zerpa back instead of adding Cruz would have been a better idea. Cleveland had 3 lefty hitters due up in the 7th and we basically had no LH reliever available. They would have pinch hit for Naylor but Kwan and Gimeniz would have still hit. Just a thought….
Wild how the Royals had a bullpen that was really stocked with lefties (four at one point), to not having anyone available. I get the argument that can be made, but Zerpa has just been frustrating to watch over this last month. Another argument that can be made is why bring up a guy like Cruz when your bullpen is taxed and not use him immediately? If he’s good enough to call up, he should be good enough to be thrown in the mix.
I didn't get to watch the game (damn work schedule, anyway), but I watched the highlights later. One thing that struck me was that Guardians hits in the 7th were of the "placement" variety. Didn't look like they were jacking the ball around the park so much as softly finding the grass. A couple of those not so well-placed could have made a different inning.
Most definitely. Erceg didn’t give up any loud contact. Five balls put in play. The two hardest-hit went for outs. He was the right call in that situation. Just the wrong result.
I completely understood all of Q's moves at the time. I'm just really sad that Chris Stratton is still around to be an option. He should have been jettisoned a while back. Sigh.
Another factor I'm sure Q considered was Clase. BWJ or no BWJ it would have been tough to score one run to tie against that monster. Q had to be willing to sacrifice this game in order to protect and set up his 'pen for the 'Stros. Ain't happy the way it turned out but I think he made the right moves.
Thought Erceg did his job. As I recall, every hit he gave up was either a doink, a bloop or a jam shot.
Nothing you can do about that.
You were right, Mr. B, about Vinnie coming around. I should have known better than to fret, but as a long-time Kansas City sports fan I have become accustomed to worrying.
Good point on Clase. Once the Guardians had that lead late, it was unlikely to swing back in a favorable direction. He's having an absolute mosnster of a year.
Glad to see Vinnie getting hot. A Pasquatch September bodes well for this team.
I was going ballistic in the seventh when Wacha let the first two reach that no one was ready to go at that moment. After the game I cooled off and realized it wasn't THAT big of a mistake. But if Bubic was available AT ALL, I think I would have liked to see Erceg ready to go against the top of the Guardians over after Kwan got on. Then Bubic can pitch the eighth if it's still close and you can go to Stratton for the ninth, hoping that the boys would extend the lead some more at some point and make it feel less terrifying.
Q is still a terrific manager and I guess maybe it's too early to play every game like it might the last one you play. I also argued that if it makes us feel better we can pretend that they lost Tuesday night when Lorenzen got hurt - an early injury to your starter certainly puts you behind the eight-ball for competing in that game - and then completed the series victory Wednesday behind a bullpen that wouldn't have been as used up if they hadn't given everything to ensure the win the night before.
If there was a mistake I think it was in the seventh with no one ready to go, no matter what, when the lineup flipped over the fourth time. Wacha was good, but with the elevated pitch count, that's really playing with fire.
The Royals are still in a favorable position, so I agree...it's not the time to go all kitchen sink to win every single game. Stick with the plan because that's what got you to this point in the first place. One thing I really like about Q is there's no panic in that guy. He and his staff have planned for just about every scenario I would imagine. He's going to be fun to watch down the stretch.
Agree Zerpa has been frustrating but to me would have made more sense than Cruz as a possible option. If a lefty had been available it at least gives Q a lefty to consider against a lefty heavy lineup.
I agree—there weren’t any great options in the 7th inning. And even if they got out of it relatively unscathed, there was a decent chance that someone else would have blown it in the 8th or 9th. Even minor injuries take a toll, so the Royals will have to overcome that. Fortunately, they have a bit of a cushion.
Yep. This bullpen was running on fumes. Once Wacha was coming out, nothing was guaranteed at all.
I think Q had two choices to start the bottom of the 7th: Leave in Wacha or bring in Stratton. I'm guessing that he hoped Wacha could get through the inning unscathed and then maybe Erceg for two innings? At any rate, the results probably would have been the same had he gone to Stratton there.
Imagine the howls had he brought in Stratton to protect that lead. I don’t think he would lean on Erceg for two innings just because the games are still coming fast and furious with the four in Houston. Although I suppose if he’s used for two innings on Wednesday and unavailable on Thursday, he could still pitch in two (or maybe three) games in Houston.
Bullpen management is exhausting, isn’t it? Nice that Quatraro is more than capable handling that.
I think Q made the right call with what he had available but, with hindsight being 20-20, since Long was unavailable and he wanted to avoid using Bubic or Lynch, maybe bringing Zerpa back instead of adding Cruz would have been a better idea. Cleveland had 3 lefty hitters due up in the 7th and we basically had no LH reliever available. They would have pinch hit for Naylor but Kwan and Gimeniz would have still hit. Just a thought….
Wild how the Royals had a bullpen that was really stocked with lefties (four at one point), to not having anyone available. I get the argument that can be made, but Zerpa has just been frustrating to watch over this last month. Another argument that can be made is why bring up a guy like Cruz when your bullpen is taxed and not use him immediately? If he’s good enough to call up, he should be good enough to be thrown in the mix.
I didn't get to watch the game (damn work schedule, anyway), but I watched the highlights later. One thing that struck me was that Guardians hits in the 7th were of the "placement" variety. Didn't look like they were jacking the ball around the park so much as softly finding the grass. A couple of those not so well-placed could have made a different inning.
Most definitely. Erceg didn’t give up any loud contact. Five balls put in play. The two hardest-hit went for outs. He was the right call in that situation. Just the wrong result.
I completely understood all of Q's moves at the time. I'm just really sad that Chris Stratton is still around to be an option. He should have been jettisoned a while back. Sigh.
Another factor I'm sure Q considered was Clase. BWJ or no BWJ it would have been tough to score one run to tie against that monster. Q had to be willing to sacrifice this game in order to protect and set up his 'pen for the 'Stros. Ain't happy the way it turned out but I think he made the right moves.
Thought Erceg did his job. As I recall, every hit he gave up was either a doink, a bloop or a jam shot.
Nothing you can do about that.
You were right, Mr. B, about Vinnie coming around. I should have known better than to fret, but as a long-time Kansas City sports fan I have become accustomed to worrying.
Good point on Clase. Once the Guardians had that lead late, it was unlikely to swing back in a favorable direction. He's having an absolute mosnster of a year.
Glad to see Vinnie getting hot. A Pasquatch September bodes well for this team.
Vinnie's day was 100% based on my benching him on my fantasy team yesterday. YA'LL WELCOME
I was going ballistic in the seventh when Wacha let the first two reach that no one was ready to go at that moment. After the game I cooled off and realized it wasn't THAT big of a mistake. But if Bubic was available AT ALL, I think I would have liked to see Erceg ready to go against the top of the Guardians over after Kwan got on. Then Bubic can pitch the eighth if it's still close and you can go to Stratton for the ninth, hoping that the boys would extend the lead some more at some point and make it feel less terrifying.
Q is still a terrific manager and I guess maybe it's too early to play every game like it might the last one you play. I also argued that if it makes us feel better we can pretend that they lost Tuesday night when Lorenzen got hurt - an early injury to your starter certainly puts you behind the eight-ball for competing in that game - and then completed the series victory Wednesday behind a bullpen that wouldn't have been as used up if they hadn't given everything to ensure the win the night before.
If there was a mistake I think it was in the seventh with no one ready to go, no matter what, when the lineup flipped over the fourth time. Wacha was good, but with the elevated pitch count, that's really playing with fire.
The Royals are still in a favorable position, so I agree...it's not the time to go all kitchen sink to win every single game. Stick with the plan because that's what got you to this point in the first place. One thing I really like about Q is there's no panic in that guy. He and his staff have planned for just about every scenario I would imagine. He's going to be fun to watch down the stretch.
Agree Zerpa has been frustrating but to me would have made more sense than Cruz as a possible option. If a lefty had been available it at least gives Q a lefty to consider against a lefty heavy lineup.