Right, and I understand where he was coming from. His bullpen has been exceptional all year and his team had a lead. However I agree with you, the more pitchers you use, the more likely you are going to call on someone that just doesn't have it that day. On the radio (in Chicago) they said that one of the players in the Dodgers dugout off the record told him that the homer by Marwin Gonzalez off Mr. Automatic in the 9th is by far the worst adversity their team has faced. That the whole dugout was completely deflated, they thought they were certain to win and go up 2-0.
ARod said something during the ALCS I thought was incredibly insightful: Most players - even Hall of Famers - fatten up on end-of-rotation starters and journeymen relievers. He wasn't denigrating them; his point was that the VAST majority of players in MLB are hovering just above/below average and there are far fewer elite players than there are AAAA All-Stars (I'm WAY paraphrasing here - but that was the gist). And the elite players can take full advantage of that over the course of a long season (/career). But that's no longer the case the further you go in the playoffs. The teams that survive are better, and the better teams have better players. So EVERYTHING is harder in the playoffs. The Astros and Dodgers are historically great; they are both loaded with elite talent. I think the fair assessment of Ken Giles is that he's better than MOST MLB players... but he's not necessarily better than the elite MLB players. The playing field is much more level. So I don't think it's (wholly) mental or anything of that nature. I just think he's getting beat by better players. I do agree with @ipaman that Hinch needs to be smarter in using him. But I think on any given night, Giles - and MOST pitchers at this point - are 50/50.
Eh, is the starter going 8? Who is going to pitch out of the pen? Musgrove, Devenski, & Giles have all struggled out of the pen this postseason. Peacock's given up a couple of HRs. Last night is the first time Harris has really looked good in a while. Luke Gregerson looked great in his 3 games
Giles has given up runs in 5 of 6 post season appearances thus far so he's at 17% (as opposed to your 50/50).
Not sure if mentioned but I almost broke down in tears when Bellinger at first looked like he hit a walkoff homerun. Boy I was ready to destroy Giles.
don't matter who you use, bottom line is Giles is not as effective when he goes 2 innings. I'd use our "secret weapon long reliever" aka Peacock, if our starters get pulled early.
So? His job is to get the final out. I know this is going to astound you but he's done that in 3 of 6 postseason appearances. In terms of save opportunities (again, the ONLY metric that matters), he's technically 2/3. (I say "technically" because he didn't, technically, blow a save in game 4.... although he obviously blew a lead. If we include that one, that'd make him..... well, whaddya know: 2/4)
Hey Now I am not going to argue with you. His "job" is to do whatever Hinch asks him to do. So 5 of the 6 times in the playoffs he's given up runs. Break that down however you want to.
Unfortunately, there's not a single bullpen pitcher on this roster who is immune to simply giving up runs... so you go with the guy who is actually getting that 3rd out more often than not. Devo came through last night, minus the errant pickoff WTF pickoff throw and the solo HR.... but this was after he was left for dead a week ago, looking completely helpless/lost.
you guys will still be clamoring for this guy when he is swiftly replaced next year. He's been awful in the postseason. Just like many of us were worried about.
And what he asks him to do, each and every time, is record the final out of the game. Again: so? They led 8-1 in one of those games and he saved two others. AJ Hinch's only concern is getting the last out. He's not his agent or a family member; he doesn't care what Giles' ERA is if, at the end of the day, he does what he wants him to do, which is record the final out. Also, him giving up runs doesn't undermine my point; by saying he's 50/50, I essentially meant.... he's roughly in the middle of these rosters, better than half; worse than the other half. So he's likely to get hit. Hopefully, the line-up falls favorably and he can face primarily "worse" players...
Nick I understand why Hinch gives him the ball in these situations given his options. I also understand that he'll be out there again in this series. If we're going to win this series he better get his **** together, because they won last night despite his pathetic performance. So what he pitched two innings. When Hernandez got the tying hit I believe it was Giles 33rd pitch.
I was far more upset with the walk he gave up to Forsythe. He tried to paint the outside corner on 3-2... got pretty damn close... and walked him. Forsythe has 5 HR's on the year. None in the playoffs. You're in Dodger stadium, albeit with juiced balls on a warm night. I'm not saying to throw it down the middle... but once they went 0-2 on him, both him (and McCann) treated him with Jose Altuve/Correa-level caution.
By no means was I trying to undermine your point. My point was he's given up runs in 5 of 6 appearances. That is all.
For what it's worth, Giles has pitched more than 1 inning 3 times in the post season (huge sample size). In all 3 games, he gave up a run in the second inning of pitching and 0 runs in the first.
