LOS ANGELES – From late March in South Korea to early October in San Diego, Mike Shildt mounted a compelling candidacy for National League Manager of the Year. Guardian His first year at the helm suffered a midseason collapse in the first half, suffered significant injuries and massive payroll cuts, and was forced to miss a tear after the All-Star break.
On Saturday at Dodger Stadium, under the magnifying glass of a division series against a blueblood rival and the best player on the planet, Shildt made a move that — fair or not — has turned into a less positive memory.
Chain of events that led to 7-5 defeat dodgers Started in the bottom of the fourth after the starter dialing off The Nos. 8 and 9 hitters were allowed consecutive one-out singles. he brought shohei ohtani At the plate, a small earthquake occurred in Chavez Ravine two innings after the potential National League MVP clubbed a three-run homer.
Shildt opted to lift the ceasefire. Adrian MorejonEstablishing left-on-left matches. The switch almost produced the desired result; On a full count, Morezon threw a 98.4 mph fastball that jammed Ohtani and broke his bat. About.
“Morezon definitely made a beautiful pitch and blew it out,” Shildt said. “And he got one in center field.”
Mookie Betts scored on a single by Dodgers left fielder Teoscar Hernandez off reliever Jeremiah Estrada. (Jane Kamin-Onsia/Imagen Images)
In a figurative sense, after Ohtani’s bases-loading failure, the manager’s subsequent move was not a failure at all. But this also did not work as expected.
Morezon pulls off a splitter well inside on an 0-2 count against the perennial MVP candidate Mookie BettsThen he pulled another one. This time the ball went away from the catcher kyle higashioka – A run scored in the third, cutting the Padres’ lead to one. With first base open and the count 2–2, Schilt ordered an intentional walk to Bates. He brought a sick, lefty-swing freddy freeman At the plate for a possible double play.
Shildt later said, “Mookie is not going to hit ground balls against lefties.” “He’s not going to throw a lot of blows. And he is about to walk. So, now you can sit there and say, ‘Let’s tap-dance around that.’ No, let’s go to Freddy with Morezon, who throws a 50 percent ground-ball rate against lefties.
The numbers at least partially support Schilt’s explanation. Facing a 2-2 count in the regular season, Bates hit ground balls 33.7 percent of the time. He walked (22 times) almost as often as he struck out (24 times).
Against left-handed batters in the regular season, Freeman hit ground balls 42.3 percent of the time. On Saturday, Schilt also had to consider: The Dodgers’ first baseman had been playing with a recent ankle sprain.
In the bottom of the fourth, Schilt stuck to an interesting option, despite the fact that Freeman had already singled twice and surprised the Padres by stealing a base. And this bet almost succeeded.
Freeman hits a first-pitch ground ball in the normal direction Donovan SolanoThe first baseman shrugged it off and, with no teammates particularly close to the bag for a double-play attempt, made an impressive, cross-body throw to home plate to beat the runner from third. Shildt went to the mound and called jeremiah estrada From the bullpen, setting up a righty-on-righty matchup against the Dodgers’ cleanup hitter teoscar hernandez,
Two pitches later, Hernandez hit a single to center field, the ball went off Jackson Merrill’s glove, and two Dodgers crossed the plate – including Bates with the go-ahead score. los angeles Never went back again.
“The whole inning was not where we wanted, but played the way we basically wanted,” Shildt said. “And Ohtani flared up once. Nobody had a ground ball from Freddy. Solano played brilliantly, gaining strength on home ground.
“We have Estrada, who we like very much. And we like a right on Hernandez. And, to his credit, he took a swing and got two runs.”
Saturday was not the first time Shildt ordered a deliberate walk with two strikes. On September 17, with runners on third in a tied game, the reliever jason adam had a complete count against houston‘S kyle tuckerShildt decided to put Tucker at first base, pointing out Tucker’s tendency to put the ball in play later. The Astros scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch by Adams. The Padres tied the game again but ultimately lost in extras.
Less than three weeks later, following a series-opening loss, there was more than just a fourth-inning sequence.
Padres jump Dodgers starter for third time this season yoshinobu yamamoto For many runs in the first innings. Then, for the third time in as many postseason games, they struggled to generate anything against the opposing bullpen.
“After Yamamoto went out, I feel like they brought in guys who just executed pitches, and they weren’t afraid to attack,” the Padres right fielder. Fernando Tatis Jr. Said. “Yeah, they silenced our bats for most of the game.”
Cease admitted after the game that his inaccuracy against the bottom of the Dodgers’ order “kind of killed me.” He said he was not surprised that Shildt did not allow him to face Ohtani for a third time.
“I let runners get in front of him, and these are definitely going to win games,” Cease said. “I think if I had been performing more consistently, maybe I would have gotten that opportunity, but it wasn’t today.”
Until they prove otherwise, the Padres are one of several teams that have not found a consistent solution for Ohtani, who is followed by two other potential Hall of Famers in the Dodgers’ order.
“Listen, he’s a good player,” Schilt said. “Obviously, he has done some special things this year. I feel good about it – it’s just about execution. Against really good players you have to be even better. “But we also have really good players.”
Some of that talent was on display Saturday. third baseman manny machadoWith the three-run homer in the top of the first, he broke a tie with Tony Gwynn on the Padres’ all-time postseason RBI leaderboard. Tatis continued to perform in front of fans in his first postseason appearance, doubling the ball at 118.9 mph, the hardest hit ball of his career. After four at-bats, the veteran infielder xander bogarts Hit a double line with a lead of two runs. Merrill continued to display a precocious blend of talent and skill, completing two hard-earned tours.
Yet, as is often the case at this time of year, one manager and his offensive moves became an unforgiving spotlight. Beginning in the bottom of the fourth, Schilt spent four high-leverage relievers – first in an effort to preserve the lead and then in an effort to chase down the win.
Time will soon tell whether the intentional walk in the fourth inning is remembered as a costly decision or a footnote in the comeback story. To advance, the Padres must win three of four games or the next three. Facing the same Dodgers franchise, he accomplished the feat two Octobers ago, creating one of the fondest memories.
This too is just a memory.
“I mean, it’s a different year,” Machado said. “We just have to go out there and try to win tomorrow. We’ve been having this mentality all year. You know, put it behind us and come back tomorrow and compete.
(Photo by Adrian Morejon and Mike Schilt: Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images)
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