Read about a Quade 'teaching moment'
We'll be watching the Cubs in-person at Wrigley on this sunny Sunday with another eye toward Des Moines, where manager Ryne Sandberg and the Iowa Cubs are one win away from the PCL playoffs. The I-Cubs beat Memphis 8-5 last night to take a 2-game lead with two games to play. Iowa needs to win one of two to clinch a postseason spot because Memphis holds the tiebreakers. Jeff Samardzija pitches for the I-Cubs today.
The big Cubs go for the series sweep against the Mets today, and we'll get to some good stuff on managing from Mike Quade in this blog. Lineup:
Baker, 2B
Castro, SS
Byrd, CF
Ramirez, 3B
Nady, 1B
Soriano, LF
Colvin, RF
Soto, C
Dempster, P
Dempster is aiming to become the fourth Canadian-born pitcher to reach 100 victories. He has 99 entering today. The others from the Great White North with at least 100 are Fergie Jenkins (284), Kirk McCaskill (106) and Reggie Cleveland (105).
Castro has mutihit efforts in six straight games, becoming the first Cubs rookie since Don Johnson in 1944 to do so. The last Cubs rookie with seven straight mulithit games was Billy Herman in August 1932.
Speaking of Castro, Quade had him sacrifice with runners on first and second with nobody out yesterday and the Cubs ahead 5-3 in the eighth. Bunt with your hottest hitter, asked one of my colleagues?
“I thought it was a teaching moment, Mike said. "For him, it was as tough right-hander (Bobby Parnell) who throws hard, and we're trying to teach this kid (Castro). We know he's confident at swinging the bat, and we seem to spend a lot of time talking about his mistakes. But I brought him over and said, 'This is the winning part of the game. Get this bunt down and help the team.'
“The more you see me, I'm not a bunt guy. When I got home last night my brother asked me and looked at me and said, 'Bunt him?' I said it was a teachable moment. I wanted him to give himself up, not to mention we had some pretty hot hitters behind him.”
If Castro were an established player?
“He would have hit,” Mike said. “In the minor leagues, you get players like him and you never bunt.”
MINOR-LEAGUE ROUNDUP
Mitch Atkins got the win for Iowa yesterday, going 6 innings and giving up 7 hits and 4 runs, 2 earned. Bobby Scales hit his 10th homer. Brad Snyder extended his hitting streak to seven games. He’s 14-for-33 (.424) in the streak. Jason Dubois extended his hitting streak to 11 games. He’s 21-for-48 (438) in the streak.
Tennessee (AA) beat Carolina 10-5. Steve Clevenger hit his fifth homer. Ryan Buchter worked 3 innings, giving up 6 hits and four runs. Brandon Guyer had 3 hits, marking the 11th time he’s had at least 3 in a game this year. Kyle Smit, acquired from the Dodgers in the Ted Lilly trade, got the win with a scoreless seventh.
Daytona (A) fell 3-1 to Lakeland. Oswaldo Martinez pitched 3 innings, giving up no hits and 1 run. DJ LeMahieu extended his hitting streak to five games.
Peoria beat Quad Cities 8-2 with Ryan Searle getting the win with 5 innings of 2-hit, 2-run ball. He’s 7-8 with a 4.38 ERA. Nelson Perez extended his hitting streak to seven games with his 11th homer. He’s 9-for-25 (.360) in the streak.
Boise (A) committed 5 errors in a 3-2 loss to Yakima. Northwestern product Eric Jokisch worked 4 innings, giving up 4 hits and 1 unearned run. Oufielder Alvaro Ramirez and second baseman Pierre LePage were named to the Northwest League all-star team. LePage, drafted this year, was the only unanimous selection on the all-star team.
up 5-3 with no outs in the bottom 1/2 of the 8th, I'm sure castro didn't feel any pressure. so with a hot hitter with speed i swing away. if you go by the so called book to add runs, and teach winning baseball, you bunt with a Righty to try to stay out of a DP. you swing away with a lefty. a ground ball to the left (SS) side is easier to turn a DP than a lefty hitting to the right side.
if I'm not a bunting manager, I hit away with a hot hitting rookie and for sure before a 250 veteran. it's the 250 vet I'd have bunt if he knew how. so Quade had some earl weaver in him in the minors, or simply, back yard BB.
what surprised me was Quade basically saying he never bunted in the minors. "with players like him he never bunts in the minors". what did he do/teach down there?
didn't Ricketts say he wanted someone who teaches, strike Quade out. he should have answered by asking "what kind of baseball do you play"?
as far as castro learning to bunt, lol, who on this team can bunt? bunting is part of the game weather some of us like it or not, but I too believe it's over used.
the call/answer was almost "rookie like", inexperience, not ready for the big top. seems to me the pressure if any was on Quade.
I believe Louie bunted 7 times with a runner on 2B, no outs in the 1st inning last year. gave up an out to move the guy to 3rd. it worked once, the next guy hit a homer. but the guy was already in scoring position and he gave up an out in the 1st. one was on SNB and the 3 asked "what is he doing"?
I would have let castro hit away, and if he hit a grounder, he has the speed to avoid a DP and one guy would have been on 3rd with 1 out. back to the real game, food/beer, more tomorrow boys.
Quade was trying to teach Castro about sacrificing himself moreso than "how to bunt".
As a side note, Quade is known as a good teacher of fundemental baseball.
I agree with you. Quade even mentioned that point. my comment was more in reference to someone suggesting it's better to practice bunting in real game situations............I'm sure he's a good teacher of whatever he teaches, but shouldn't you practice what you preach?
y not just have castro as your lead-off man and then from time 2 time let him bunt 4 a base hit.
Why not learn how to spell out words like a big boy?
Ryne Sandberg was ejected from Iowa's game today in the first inning. The I-Cubs trail Memphis 7-6 in the sixth. Samardzija has worked 6 innings, giving up 8 hits and 7 runs.
Reports out of Des Moines say Sandberg went out to second to argue a call when his center fielder, Jim Adduci, was called out stealing second in the bottom of the first. He didn't argue long before coming back to his third-base coaching position. The third-base umpire, Barry Larson, walked toward Sandberg. Ryno got in his face and argued back. Reports say the umpire never gave a definitive ejection signal.
I like that Quade says he is not a "bunt guy" (I think the sacrifice bunt should be outlawed, myself), but if he doesn't believe in bunting much, and would have let a veteran hitter hit away, how is this a "teachable moment" about "winning"? Sounds more like overthinking and messing with the kid's understanding of the game. Not sure what to make of that.
Is that there are pressure situations when a sacrifice bunt IS the right play. Maybe that was not the exact situation. But there might be a time when Castro needs to be able to get a bunt down, and you can't duplicate a real game situation during practice time.
A player like Castro needs to be able to get a bunt down in a game. What is wrong with practicing it, late in a season, in a game which means next to nothing.
You are the only one over thinking it.
I don't think that is what Quade was saying, but even if it was it makes no sense if he is not someone who wants to bunt often. It's also not much of a pressure situation if it is a meaningless game in a lost season as you point out, so your point doesn't hold up well. As far as overthinking it, a forum like this is for discussion of baseball. I would hope we would be thinking about it. If you are one of those "it's all instinct guys," you'll need to get used to the fact that some people think about baseball. What I meant was that Quade seemed to be doing some psychology and putting that ahead of the actual baseball game, and I question the wisdom of that. The question still stands: why is having Castro bunt a teachable moment if a veteran hitter would have hit away and if Quade doesn't call for many bunts. (My guess is that Quade is much more of a bunt guy than he thinks he is.)
Why outlaw one of the most pivotal strategy plays in the game? There are times where it just makes sense to do it.
Sac bunts are almost always the wrong move because they practically guarantee a failed big inning - and that is when they "work." As another post points out, they do not "work" a large percentage of the time. It's pretty obvious when you think about it. The object of the game is not to make outs and to score runs. A sacrifice bunt is intentionally giving away an out; that makes no sense in most situations. When there is a sacrifice bunt, it makes a one running inning marginally more likely, but a multi-run inning far less likely (don't have the numbers at hand). If the object is to score runs and not make outs, the sacrifice bunt is a pretty bad move in most situations. There are rare times late in games when it is the right move, but very rarely. Even pitchers should not bunt so often; a position player should almost never bunt - particularly one of your best hitters. Earl Weaver was right about dismissing small ball, as he was right about so much.
or at least enough to be effective. Sac. bunts work 68-69% of the time. That's 30% that they don't work. Look up "The Book" by Tom Tango and Michael Lichtman.
is wrong most of the time.
That's the one and only reason I don't want Brenly managing...he'll be sac bunting in the first inning with the 2 hitter...then he'll do it again in the 3rd.
I'll take a marketing ploy hire of Sandberg any day over a manager that will bunt like that.
I know you have some statistical program to back up your contention bunting is wrong "most of the time". What are the rare moments/ situations that Coach Carlos would bunt?
Excluding pitchers, rarely. Never before the 7th inning.
But - you do have to play the gut at times. Wind blowing in, quality of pitchers on mound, spot in the order, what innning - the're all factors that go in to the "gut" computer.