Games » St. Louis Cardinals
May22How they gave one away
Lee Judge
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The Royals pitched like Jack Kerouac on Sunday: They were all over the place. (Hey, how many top-notch literary references do you get to see in sports stories?)
The Royals hitters were scoring as fast as they could but were unable to keep up with the Royals pitchers, who were busy walking 13 batters and hitting one. Add in the error by Mike Aviles on a tough play, and the Royals gave the Cardinals 15 extra base-runners in a close game. You ain’t gonna win much if you do that.
Home-plate umpire Angel Campos didn’t help. He had a tight strike zone all day, and several Cardinals batters got the benefit of the doubt on close calls. On the other hand, I’m almost positive Campos was also behind the plate when the Royals were batting, and they only walked once.
Campos’ zone indirectly led to the ejection of Royals catcher Matt Treanor and manager Ned Yost. During most games, the catcher and umpire have a dialogue all day. They essentially are working as a team, and it’s not uncommon for the catcher to ask where the umpire had the pitch and where the pitcher needs to throw it to get the call. As in, “Where was that?” and “Bring it up a bit.”
These negotiations are fairly routine, and baseball etiquette calls for them to be conducted in private. The catcher always looks ahead (looking back at the umpire is considered showing him up) and the umpire never comes around and confronts the catcher face to face. Although once in a while, cleaning the plate serves the same purpose. The umpire sweeps the dish while telling the catcher he’s had about enough.
Anyway, the Treanor-Campos dispute apparently was not about the strike zone, but about whether Treanor could continue to talk to Campos about the zone. Treanor was professional and stared forward, Campos lost it and tossed him. That brought out Yost, who felt Campos hadn’t handled the situation correctly and then Ned got tossed.
Then Campos got into it with the Royals’ acting manager, John Gibbons, when Campos refused to ask for help on the hit-by-pitch call while Gerald Laird was bunting. To me, refusing to ask for help shows insecurity on the umpire’s part. (If he got it right, why not? And if he got it wrong, doesn’t he want to get it right? The correct answer is no. Some umpires would rather save face.)
Give credit to the Royals for battling back from a 7-1 deficit. They might have beaten the Cardinals, but beating the Cardinals and their own pitching staff was too much.
Sisson’s not happy
Like I said yesterday, the Royals are not going to abandon their base-running philosophy, but that doesn’t mean they’re OK with guys getting picked off. Doug Sisson made that point clear and called for some extra base-running practice early Sunday. He told me that the pickoffs meant he wasn’t doing a good enough job, and neither were the players. They see the problem and intend to get it fixed.
Pickoff timing
Base-runners take secondary leads once the pitcher goes home in the form of a couple of sideways shuffle steps. Catchers sometimes are taught to attempt a pickoff when the batter tries to bunt and misses or swings through the ball. (On Saturday, Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina picked off Alex Gordon after Eric Hosmer swung and missed.) The reason? The base-runner will get more aggressive with that secondary lead if he thinks the ball will be put in play and you might catch him a step too far away from the base.
Pena’s wild pitches
Robinson Tejeda threw two wild pitches Saturday, and I wrote that it looked like Brayan Pena’s chest was too vertical when he blocked the pitches. Being vertical allows the ball to bounce away when it hits the chest protector. If the catcher can get his chest above the ball and closer to parallel, the ball will drop straight down.
Brayan thought I was right on the first wild pitch, but he said the second pitch bounced further out in front of the plate and he had to stay vertical to make sure the ball didn’t go over him. There always is something new to learn out here.
The corners have to hit
I was talking with Chris Getz about Eric Hosmer’s defense and noted that nobody keeps a first baseman for his glove. Chris agreed and said his value to a team could be shown in a variety of ways besides hitting: defense, base-running, getting down a bunt, etc. But a corner player (first base, third base, left field and right field) has to hit. If the one of the guys up the middle turns out to be an offensive force, it might take some pressure off one of the corner players, but it also can lead to that weird baseball logic: “The shortstop isn’t hitting, so you’re being sent down.”
One more detail
I was talking to Kelly Heath about metrics and statistics (they all use this stuff, some more than others), and he was talking about playing shortstop. He was going through all the details you have to think about, and one of them was the catcher’s mitt. Say you’re set up for a pitch away, and the catcher’s mitt starts to move inside to receive the ball. The infielders have to shift with it in order to be in the right place if the ball is put in play.
Gibby on defense
I talked about just making the routine play and how important that was in baseball. John Gibbons (who has had just a tad more experience than me in a slightly better league) pointed out that just making the routine play was enough if you had a good offense, but if you struggle to score runs, you better rob some hitters. Can you say Alcides Escobar?
The springboard game
Those of us in the media like the idea of a “springboard” game. Hell, we like any simple explanation. Ever notice how we explain the actions of millions of stockholders with one explanation? (Investors depressed by gas prices, drove stocks down … we know their motivation and we didn’t talk to any of them.) Anyway, the idea that an exciting win leads to a string of wins or a depressing loss sends you into a slump is irresistible, but it probably isn’t true.
You could be as upbeat as you liked and Nolan Ryan was still going to stick it where the sun don’t shine the next day. Baseball guys spend a lot of time keeping an even keel, and fans would be wise to do the same. Getting out in front, thinking about the future is a good way to screw up your now. The smart guys take it one game at a time. The really smart guys take it one pitch at a time and fans would do well to take it the same way.
The Rapture
I didn’t see Trevor Vance on Sunday morning, but intended to ask him about the grounds crew’s plan if the world had ended Saturday. Does the Rapture call for covering the infield?
Betemit
Gordon
Francoeur
Glad to read that Sisson is taking some accountability for the guys being picked off - and that he places some of the blame on them as well. It would be interesting to see a stat that compares the most aggressive base-running teams of the past to these Royals to see how their ratio of runners lost on the paths to extra bases taken stacks up. I have to believe our ratio is right up there, if not the highest to this point in the season. By the way, the pickoffs are only a part of the problem. An example is Butler getting caught between 2nd and 3rd on the game-tying hit yesterday. I would not have a problem had it been most others on the team, but he has to be one of the slowest players in MLB today.
Lee - if it is not necessary to keep it a secret (I know that Jeff Francis does not like to talk about how he does things) and you know or can find out, what is the Royal's pitching philosophy? I keep hearing that it is "to pound the strike zone with quality pitches not right down the middle of the plate, to move the ball in and out, up and down, fast and slow." But so often, like yesterday, it seems or pitchers either forget how to throw strikes and can't remember until it is too late, or that they deliberately nibble too far out of the zone, routinely running up 3-2 or 2-2 counts that use too many pitches and let the hitters see too many pitches. So what is it, and, concerning execution, how much of that is the responsibility of the pitching coach, and how much of the pitcher? Thanks as always for your great insights.
I didn't get to watch the game, but was the lack of walks by the Royals hitters because the cards pitchers were better at hitting the zone or the Royals batters didn't adjust to laying off the borderline pitches? Seitz has helped with the patience but this has been a notorious problem for our team in recent years.
If your going to reference classic American writers of that time, go with a Steinbeck or Hemmingway (Sleeper: John Kennedy Toole). Kerouac was a junkie whose run-on (and on and on) drivel was just not good writing. It got attention for the start of the 'Beat Nic' generation of greaser, punk, drug addict, criminal hoodlums but really, its just overrated, pointless trash. His buddy Burroughs was actually much better (though not special). You brought it up Lee.
That was a scary game yesterday. Keeping score upstairs, it was really great to starting marking down hits for each batter in our line-up (I make a hash to the side so I can see at a glance who has yet to get a hit). Although it would have been nice to see a perfect line up, had Hosmer been able to get a hit.
I'll almost give Alex Gordon a pass on his pick-off from first. Molina (as with all of the Molinas) is a force behind the plate. And I've seen him throw out runners at 1st and 3rd easily with his snap throw after receiving the pitch. He's the one Cardinal I wouldn't mind seeing become a Royal.
The 'Springboard' comment is typical Yost. Which is to say..he's a baseball guy, that's been around the game a LONG time. Long enough to not be superstitious.
The umpire / catcher issue yesterday reminded me of the Jason Kendall game last year. Again it was a minor league umpire that did get him his face, down on his level. I remember Yost immediately calling out from the bench as soon as he saw what was going down. I will say Pena's comments after the game about how they have a tough job, etc, etc etc. Was quite down to earth, but you have to wonder in the back of Pena's mind if he wasn't thinking..."Remember, you got to catch in front of these guys again...be nice"
BTW - You looked quite intense when the camera caught your face when interviewing Treanor....almost like you had the 60' 6" stair of man who'd been plunked one to many times. And the next time you were going to beat the pitching machine into submission!
Don: Sisson is definitely tasking responsibility for the pickoffs. He told me he hadn't slept for three nights, he was so upset. He feels he needs to do a better job and so do the base runners. They've got specific reads they use and if the reads are wrong, it's his problem and if the reads are right, but the players aren't focusing, it's their problem. Either way, he intends to get it fixed. He feels that aggressive base running means getting thrown out going to the next base, not coming back to the one you already have.
It might also be that the league is adjusting to the Royals. One team sees they're biting on the right-handed balk move, so they all break it out to see what they can get away with.
This is the way of big league baseball: they adjust to you and you have to adjust back.
And I agree with you about Butler. I was running out of space and didn't write about it, but tagged him with a mental mistake for that move. Sometimes you'll see a base runner draw a throw intentionally, willing to trade the out to ensure the run gets home, but Frenchy's fast and looked like he would score standing up. Billy's move cost the Royals an at-bat with an important run in scoring position.
Steve: I can try to find out more, but the Royals pitching philosophy (as I understand it) is very close to the Atlanta Braves philosophy under Leo Mazzone: command the low and away fastball and work off that.
Once you're pounding that zone, the hitter has to lean out to cover and then you can go back inside. You can also throw a breaking pitch to that zone and run it off the plate.
That probably varies with each pitcher. They all have strengths and weaknesses and work around those, but I don't know of any pitching philosophy that encourages 2-0, 2-1 and 3-1 counts.
They are getting told to throw strikes, especially strike one. As Clint Hurdle once said to me, they "either can't or they won't and neither one's acceptable." I'd say it's more about execution than philosophy. It's the same old stuff: throw strikes and if you can throw low strikes and then trust your stuff and your defense. This is a good subject and I'll write more on it for the game notes.
Matt: OK, so why only one walk by the Royals? It's always good to ask if it's us or them. Maybe the Cardinals just did a better job of throwing strikes. And when a pitcher is really good hitters don't want to fall behind and be forced to swing at secondary pitches headed out of the zone.
I'll ask Kevin Seitzer about it when they get back in town, but hitting instructors usually teach 'selective aggressiveness' meaning: be very aggressive when you get 'your' pitch, but only then. So were the Royals just getting their pitch? I don't know, but I'll see what I can find out.
Benjamin: Uh, thanks for the literary criticism? But I used Jack Kerouac in the joke because he wrote "On the Road" a book about 'being all over the place' like the Royals pitchers.
The other authors you mentioned, didn't.
Kevin: Catchers have a special relationship with umpires. They really do work together and need to have a good relationship. When that goes sour, they're very careful about what they say, because, you're right, they will work together again.
And maybe I looked so intense on TV because Jason Kendall was standing right behind me. The last time I didn't pay attention to what he was doing I got smoked by a 92-mph slider.
NICE!!! I saw his mug pop into the frame (much to my wife's delight , but whatever) and yeah, he did kinda give you a look like "What can I do to Judge next....
Speaking of Kerouac, starting tomorrow, the Royals will be On the Road.
Let's hope they're using fewer drugs than Jack was.
Who's next to lose their starting pitching job in the rotation? And who's their replacement?
Vinnie: No clue, I know next to nothing about GM issues, who's coming up or who's going down.
People will ask a lot of questions that I know nothing about and I need to avoid the temptation of playing expert.
I hope I can do a decent job of understanding someone's game (strengths/limitations) after watching them play awhile, but even that takes 40 games or so.
The other thing I'm trying to do is act as a go-between for the readers of the site and the team. If you guys have questions (and there have been some very good ones) I can go ask someone.
Although, roster decisions aren't discussed with the media. Nodody kicks around who might be leaving or showing up. That would cause a whole lot of problems.
We only find out about a move afterwards: the player in question is gone and the new guy is here before it's even announced.
Sorry I can't be of more help on this subject.
Lee, I was finally able to watch "most" of a game this year (missed the 1st two innings)and have some observations that some may not have noticed. (but probably) Besides the elephant in the room being 13 walks a hits batsman and lets say the obvious. lets talk about Butlers base running mistake for starters. Not only is it a mistake but the timing is ridiculous and so is the read. He's already in scoring position with two outs so not reading the throw and just gambling on making it to third was a bad decision. The outfielder threw the ball to home and Butler immediately headed to third without reading the fielders or the throw. Bad choice! That's not aggressive base running.....that's bad base running given the score and inning. Early in the game it would still be a bad decision but "maybe" more forgiving. When you have a game filled with walks, hitting, errors and a multitude of plays, the most minute things seems to go unnoticed. In a game where you can point at numerous things, why did I notice this? In the tenth inning, Pena hits a double scoring Butler. Great! Now we're down one run with one out in the tenth. Well wait! Doesn't base running start out of the box? Aren't Doubles made out of the box? Well, then so are triples. Did you notice when Pena hit the ball, he first of all postured his bat saying, "I got extended on that one and hit the p#@$ out of that" as if he knew it was out of the park, then he nonchalantly staggers down the line until he gets 3/4 down the line then realizes "oh sh#$, its not out.....a double is the result. If he bust out of the box he has a triple changing the whole inning. Instead of one out and runner on second, it's one out runner on third which changes the pitch sequence and the numerous opportunities to score the runner from third to tie the game. I'm not saying that would have made the difference, but would it have? Just a little observation that I'm sure the common fan didn't notice. I think your scoring system should dock him on that one..ha. You may think he wouldn't have gotten a triple, but look at the replay and see how much time he gobbled up getting to first. Talk about the little things! I appreciate what your doing Lee. This is an awesome site and glad you are putting in the time and trying to educate the fan so he/she may enjoy the game at a higher level. Kudos! One thing I learned from reading your post today.......should I be embarrassed for not knowing this? Well......Picking a runner off first while a batter is swinging. Wow! Never thought of that. Makes so much sense. Nothing more to say. Thanks Lee.
Oh....and of course the umpire was out of line....wont get into that one...
I understand that baseball is best played on an even keel. I understand that sports are very rarely life and death situations, and that is a good thing.
But I do sort of resent being told that I as a fan should be on an even keel. MLB makes at least a couple hundred bucks off of me every year because I am a crazy fan. I drop a couple hundred on the baseball package each season to watch the Royals, and I normally make a pilgrimage north to see the Royals play the Rangers each season.
The team is successful insofar as we are passionate about it. And it is a freaking game; its only importance is what we as goofball fans attach to it. So asking me to chill about a tough loss or a walk-off win is a dangerous thing. Because if I chill too much, maybe next year that baseball package will look like a really unnecessary luxury.....
Lee, there have been numerous references to the Royals' radar guns at the K being inaccurate. I watch nearly every game on TV and have, indeed, wondered at times whether it is possible that so many guys are hitting 98 and 99 (even triple-digits). Soria, until the past couple of years had consistently been pitching 88-92 mph, but the last two years is routinely hitting 93-95. Is this something the Royals are doing to generate fan interest? It does not seem that difficult to correct (but then, neither does a working bullpen phone).
Curtis: You're absolutely correct and I probably worded that poorly. I don't mean that we have to take things the way players do, with as little emotion as possible. I was trying to say (perhaps poorly) that giving up on them because they hit a bad streak or deciding they're playoff bound after a good streak is an over-reaction. I mentioned the radio guy that called Hosmer a superstar after two games and that's the kind of response I'm talking about. If they'd won that Sunday game against the Cards I think fans going bats would've been entirely appropriate. I've also heard fans say, 'yeah, so far so good, but can they keep it up?' How about just enjoying now and not projecting failure or success based on the most recent event? I meant enjoy the hell out of a great game, but don't go overboard with what it means.
OK, so that explanation makes things better or worse?
Rob: Thanks for joining in. I didn't even notice Pena's break out of the box and that's what I mean when I say you guys can help this website be more accurate.
If you notice something I didn't, bring it up and we can talk about it.
I didn't dock Brayan mental mistake points for his break, but did for Billy getting caught between bases. Like you said, he was already in scoring position and there were two outs. (On the other hand, when Billy's on second is he really in scoring position?)
I've seen runners attract throws to ensure another guy scoring, but that didn't seem to be the case here.
Don: I've heard from several sources that the radar gun is juiced at Kauffman and, yes, it's probably to get the fans worked up. I've written this before, but Clint Hurdle told me he had it turned off at Coors Field because he was tired of pitchers turning around to see how hard they just threw.
Plus, velocity is a nice club to have in the bag, but a 68-MPH pitch might be more effective at times than a pitch at 101.
Jason Kendall told me a 100-MPH fastball is great, but show a big league hitter three of them in a row and the third one will get turned around.
Pitching is location, movement and changing speeds, velocity is just throwing.
Matt & Lee: I agree somewhat with the reply on why only one walk, but let's be honest - Jaime was bouncing pitches to the plate that first inning. it's always said that they have to be hitting their spots to get the close ones, so the fact Angel was giving him the close one's was ridiculous! He obviously showed inconsistencies, if not favoritism. I found his name listed on a gambling advice site as a top 5 ump to bet the over with a road team (even with so few games), so maybe he just has some psychological tendency to want show how much power he has to a home crowd.
Another theory I heard was that he's new on Joe West's crew and was showing Joe that he's a tough guy. No way of knowing, but he didn't handle things very well.
wow, I get to watch my second game of the year. It's hard to have input when you can't watch games. My umpiring gig got rained out tonight so I'm able to catch another one, I'm probably going to have to record some of it because of.....ummmm ummmmm, American Idol (wife). Shhhhh, don't tell Lee. Anyhow, your comment about Butler "maybe" being in scoring position because of his lack of speed, well with two outs there is a slight advantage because you don't have to worry about reading anything off the bat........just run which will give you a step or two advantage. So, I'm going to say "yes" he was in scoring position. I'm sure you were being facetious (sorta) but I thought I'd point out that with two outs there is an advantage to the baserunner as far as the jump goes. I heard the exact same thing about the Joe West theory. He's trying to build a hard group of guys but what he did wasn't major league material. You'd think being fresh in the majors, you'd want to go unnoticed and mind your p's and q's and call it a days work.....like it should be anyway.
One last thing: talking about the radar gun and what they flash in the stadium for the fans and players to see. I heard that they'll up the speed on the board so that the opposition will see 95 when actually its like 91 so mentally the hitter is preparing for that and getting something different messing with their timing some. Ok! If we have that information, I'm pretty sure they have the same so I say as a player you disregard it and do what they are supposed to do and watch the pitcher on the on deck circle and time him there. Who knows?
Rob: Paul Splittorff once told me if the player on first was slow enough, he'd treat first like it was open and work around anyone he didn't want to face. You're right though, with two outs even Billy should score on most singles.
As for the radar readings: I'm guessing big league hitters trust their eyes more than the gun, but I've never asked anyone about it.
Next home stand I will ask somebody.