2016 College World Series

[GatorBart]

You can't win it unless you get there. Sully has done it 5 out of 6 times. He gets better every year.

JFC....smh

I think it's 5 of 7, but I'm nitpickin'. Still, odds are we probably should have won a NC by now. That's baseball.

 

[LagoonGator68]

By the way, is it true that Sully calls all the pitches? If true, he has far more of an impact on the game than MLB managers, for example.

Impossible because the hairy one says so.

 

[GatorBart]

Sully is going to have to learn that small ball and manufacturing runs any way you possibly can in certain situations is a necessary evil to winning championships. Unless he adapts, I don't believe we'll ever go all the way. Simple as that.

People were complaining a month ago that we didn't have enough long ball hitters in the lineup (I'm not saying it was you), now it's 'we gotta play small ball'. People just like to complain.

 

[Durty South Swamp]

People were complaining a month ago that we didn't have enough long ball hitters in the lineup (I'm not saying it was you), now it's 'we gotta play small ball'. People just like to complain.

Ehhh I'm gonna go ahead and say you are not remembering correctly Bart. One month ago there was a huge discussion about us not being willing to play small ball, there was even a thread on it. It was a major topic of discussion for about a weeks time. I remember nothing about us griping that we don't have enough long ball hitters. I do know that sometimes folks complain that we don't have enough hitters in general, however.

 

[GatorBart]

Ehhh I'm gonna go ahead and say you are not remembering correctly Bart. One month ago there was a huge discussion about us not being willing to play small ball, there was even a thread on it. It was a major topic of discussion for about a weeks time. I remember nothing about us griping that we don't have enough long ball hitters. I do know that sometimes folks complain that we don't have enough hitters in general, however.

I don't doubt that, but people were also saying that Alonso was our only long ball hitter and we needed more power in the lineup (I don't have the time nor the will to go find it, but I'm not misremembering). Like I said, people like to complain, a lot.

 

[oxrageous]

Most managers call the pitches, even in the pros.

I'm pretty sure that isn't true. Never heard of MLB managers calling pitches.

 

[oxrageous]

I don't doubt that, but people were also saying that Alonso was our only long ball hitter and we needed more power in the lineup (I don't have the time nor the will to go find it, but I'm not misremembering). Like I said, people like to complain, a lot.

Yeah, that's what fans do on message boards.

 

[GatorBart]

I'm pretty sure that isn't true. Never heard of MLB managers calling pitches.

You're correct, for the most part. There are situations when the pro manager does call the pitches and there are exceptions.
https://www.quora.com/Who-generally...or-League-Baseball-pitcher-catcher-or-manager

Some managers such as Roger Craig are infamous for calling the pitches.

It was a great surprise to me to find out that Cal Ripken Jr. of the Orioles called over 95% of the pitches for the Orioles from 1986 through the end of his career.

 

[LagoonGator68]

I think it's 5 of 7, but I'm nitpickin'. Still, odds are we probably should have won a NC by now. That's baseball.

I think it is 5 of the LAST 6......but I didn't verify it....it's then general idea anyway.

Show me any other team that has been there 5 out of the last 8 times, even. The point is consistency.... Once you get there you have to be hot hitting, hot pitching, playing almost error free AND also be a little LUCKY! There are no friggin guarantees with the 8 very best teams currently in college baseball....just ask Mike Martin. Our bats have been the weak spot for the last 10-15 games at least. Base running has at times been atrocious. We need more speed and grittier, refuse to lose type scrappers.....rosters turn over very quickly in college baseball.

Sully is still learning, as all good coaches are. SEVEN of the eight teams in Omaha will lose the national championship....

 

[GatorBart]

Yeah, that's what fans do on message boards.

See Post #183

 

[MJMGator]

Yeah, that's what whiny b*thces do on message boards.

FIFY

 

[oxrageous]

FIFY

I wish we could all be as satisfied as you with getting swept out of the CWS, even as favorites.

 

[MertzJay26]

I wish we could all be as satisfied as you with getting swept out of the CWS, even as favorites.

Nobody is satisfied with getting swept but more so satisfied with the state of our program. 5 of last 7 years in the CWS is impressive. As well as domination of our rivals.

 

[MJMGator]

I wish we could all be as satisfied as you with getting swept out of the CWS, even as favorites.

So do I.

 

[Captain Sasquatch]

Sully is going to have to learn that small ball and manufacturing runs any way you possibly can in certain situations is a necessary evil to winning championships. Unless he adapts, I don't believe we'll ever go all the way. Simple as that.

He played small ball in the 6th(?) inning and it backfired. Had two runners on with no outs. Used one of his best hitters (Buddy Reed) to bunt the runners over to 2nd and 3rd. Then that opened up first base and forced TT to intentionally walk Alonso, completely taking away his chance to hit that monstrous home run when it still could have made a difference. Once the bases are loaded with at least one out, the double play is likely and that's exactly what happened.

Small ball has been debunked by sabermetrics for years now.

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/47102766/anthony-castrovince-debate-over-sacrifice-bunts-continues

Last season, according to Baseball Prospectus data, in the two most common situations for a sac bunt, your expectation for scoring a run was actually greater if you let the hitter swing away rather than give up an out via a bunt. With a runner at first and no outs, you had a 24.4 percent better chance of scoring a run than you did with a runner at second and one out. With runners at first and second and no outs, you had a 10.4 percent better chance of scoring a run than you did with runners at second and third and one out.

 

[ATXGator]

He played small ball in the 6th(?) inning and it backfired. Had two runners on with no outs. Used one of his best hitters (Buddy Reed) to bunt the runners over to 2nd and 3rd. Then that opened up first base and forced TT to intentionally walk Alonso, completely taking away his chance to hit that monstrous home run when it still could have made a difference. Once the bases are loaded with at least one out, the double play is likely and that's exactly what happened.

Small ball has been debunked by sabermetrics for years now.

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/47102766/anthony-castrovince-debate-over-sacrifice-bunts-continues

I actually think the "small ball" worked in this case. The problem was that JJ Schwartz (who was great last year... what happened to him) messed up and didn't hit the ball in the air. He didn't even have to get a base hit, just a long fly ball scores a run and we still have at a minimum one runner in scoring position. That was on the hitter, not the manager, the manager put him in position to be successful.

 

[Captain Sasquatch]

I actually think the "small ball" worked in this case. The problem was that JJ Schwartz (who was great last year... what happened to him) messed up and didn't hit the ball in the air. He didn't even have to get a base hit, just a long fly ball scores a run and we still have at a minimum one runner in scoring position. That was on the hitter, not the manager, the manager put him in position to be successful.

That's the risk you take when you willfully give up an out. When you're running out of outs, why give one up? It's just the shift that baseball has taken in the last 10-15 years. Sac bunting is going the way of the dodo for a reason.

 

[GatorInGeorgia]

That's the risk you take when you willfully give up an out. When you're running out of outs, why give one up? It's just the shift that baseball has taken in the last 10-15 years. Sac bunting is going the way of the dodo for a reason.

I don't know about that. Heck, even the announcer in TV (I think it was the former Hurricane pitcher) made a comment about us needing to get men on base and move them over with small ball tactics like bunts, hit and runs, etc.

 

[Captain Sasquatch]

I don't know about that. Heck, even the announcer in TV (I think it was the former Hurricane pitcher) made a comment about us needing to get men on base and move them over with small ball tactics like bunts, hit and runs, etc.

Not everyone is on board with the change from small ball to "big" ball, but numbers don't lie.

 

[T REX]

Tough trip but I still like Sully. He'll break through at some point. Great season that came up short.