CATS - I do respect the heck out of you, but the Achilles heel is overdoing it on Tito…
But I dont overdo it on Tito.
Shaw had two stellar outings the last two nights, and what do we hear on this forum?
Crickets.
Amed had a web gem last night, and what do we hear on this forum?
Crickets.
Amed had -9 DRS last season, and we heard about it almost daily. This year he has +5 DRS, one of the very best among SSs in the league, and.....
Crickets
Straw pinch hit for Palacios vs a lefty. Folks don't like it. But what were the options? Switching to a RH batter was the obvious move. The alternatives to Straw were Mercado, Clement, and Maile.
Maile, as the other catcher, was a no no.
Straw is the obvious defensive option. Using one of the others as the pinch hitter, and then replacing him with Straw, leaves Tito one less option later in the game, esp if it goes extra innings.
Nobody likes Shaw, and seemingly never have, even though he may be one of the best set up man in Cleveland history.
We used a bunch of relievers last night. We go into LA tomorrow night, when we are gonna need all of them. Using Shaws rubber arm today sets up the rest of the pen for the Dodgers.
Both moves, if you look at more than just the moment at hand, made absolute sense.