MVN - Most Valuable Network

Wild lineup leads to win in Pittsburgh

Often times, Charlie Manuel can take some blame for being stubborn with his lineup and his in-game managing. So when the lineups were released before Friday night’s game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, shockwaves were sent through PNC Park with the wildest lineup of the 2008 season. At first glance, you may have missed Chase Utley at first base. With Ryan Howard struggling to find his swing, Manuel put Utley at first and recent call-up Brad Harman at second base. In the end, it all worked out. The Phillies staved off a rally from the Bucs and took the first game of the series by a 6-5 final.

Last year, Howard still managed to post a .268/.392/.584 line despite the fact that he was injured through most of the season and struck out 199 times. This season, Howard has already struck out 35 times and, simply put, isn’t putting the ball in play enough to warrant a starting job. Manuel benched Howard on Thursday against Milwaukee, and again Friday night against lefty Zach Duke and the Pirates. Howard could be in the lineup tonight when right-hander Matt Morris pitches for Pittsburgh. In a pinch-hit appearance last night against Damaso Marte, the lefty made Howard look foolish, getting him to chase pitches out of the zone.

It’s clear that these desperate times call for desperate measures. On this night, the lineup worked. Chris Coste batted 5^th and had 3 RBIs. Pat Burrell had another hit and scored another run. But the problem remains Howard, who is now hitting a miserable .174 on the year. If he’s in the lineup tonight, he needs to be shifted. Manuel is not afraid to have a short leash with some of his players, and Howard needs to be demoted to the 6^th spot in the order. Coste, who has played well so far this season, needs more time behind the plate. Carlos Ruiz can afford to ride the pine until he turns around his slow start into something more prosperous.

Manuel’s strokes of brilliance in regard to in-game managing have been few and far between at times. On Wednesday night, he left Cole Hamels in far too long and the Brewers took advantage. On Thursday, Manuel pulled Jamie Moyer at an opportune time, and got a great inning out of set-up man Tom Gordon. On Friday, Gordon once again pitched the 7^th inning despite the fact that he is the “oh-so-holy set-up man”. It’s refreshing to see a manager who doesn’t stick to the book 24/7. The better part of the Pittsburgh lineup was due up in the 7^th, and Manuel used Gordon. J.C. Romero pitched the 8^th, and Brad Lidge threw more filth at hitters to get the save in the 9^th.

So that crazy lineup worked. So did those managerial moves. He might not be Tony LaRussa, Earl Weaver, or Billy Martin, but Charlie Manuel has done a fine job with this team so far. They may avoid a losing April for the first time since 2003. Utley and Burrell have led the team’s attack while Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino have been out. Now they need their $10 million man to start hitting. 

This entry was posted on Saturday, April 26th, 2008 at 10:48 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.