Monday, August 29, 2005
WE MUST CHILL
Okay, so we'd be out of the playoffs if the season ended today.
So what?
There is still a month of season left. But if there is any good to be reaped from our sweep at the fins of the Devil Rays, it has to be in getting the realization in front of the Angel braintrust's face that Steve Finley v.2005 is a bench player.
Mike Scioscia has already realized that he's, at best, a platoon player. But every futile at-bat and defensive play he makes underscores the fact that he just shouldn't be a regular at all at this point.
He'll get Tuesday off, against Barry Zito. So we won't really know until Wednesday if the obvious had been declared, unless an official announcement is made. I actually think this realization has set in with management. Though obviously he didn't single-handedly cause the sweep, I think it's become clear that his presence makes the lineup suboptimal.
I really think the team is going to put him on the bench, because there's just now way they can't right now. Whether they do it by putting Figgins in center with Quinlan at third with Kotch and Rivera essentially platooning at DH, or by moving Erstad to center (please) with Kotch at first, Figgins at third, and Rivera/Garret at LF/DH, it doesn't matter to me -- either way is likely to be an offensive and defensive improvement on what we've heretofore witnessed.
A successful team learns from its mistakes, and deals with them. As Alvy Singer said, a shark has to keep moving forward or else it dies (if you don't get the reference, just Google it). Giving the center field job to Steve Finley this offseason was a mistake. It is time to move forward. If we don't, we'll just have a dead shark on our hands. Hopefully the sting of the ray will be enough to shock the shark alive.
Okay, so we'd be out of the playoffs if the season ended today.
So what?
There is still a month of season left. But if there is any good to be reaped from our sweep at the fins of the Devil Rays, it has to be in getting the realization in front of the Angel braintrust's face that Steve Finley v.2005 is a bench player.
Mike Scioscia has already realized that he's, at best, a platoon player. But every futile at-bat and defensive play he makes underscores the fact that he just shouldn't be a regular at all at this point.
He'll get Tuesday off, against Barry Zito. So we won't really know until Wednesday if the obvious had been declared, unless an official announcement is made. I actually think this realization has set in with management. Though obviously he didn't single-handedly cause the sweep, I think it's become clear that his presence makes the lineup suboptimal.
I really think the team is going to put him on the bench, because there's just now way they can't right now. Whether they do it by putting Figgins in center with Quinlan at third with Kotch and Rivera essentially platooning at DH, or by moving Erstad to center (please) with Kotch at first, Figgins at third, and Rivera/Garret at LF/DH, it doesn't matter to me -- either way is likely to be an offensive and defensive improvement on what we've heretofore witnessed.
A successful team learns from its mistakes, and deals with them. As Alvy Singer said, a shark has to keep moving forward or else it dies (if you don't get the reference, just Google it). Giving the center field job to Steve Finley this offseason was a mistake. It is time to move forward. If we don't, we'll just have a dead shark on our hands. Hopefully the sting of the ray will be enough to shock the shark alive.
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