GDT 10/12/23: Braves @ Phillies - NLDS Game 4 Striders Revenge

What's interesting about both of those teams is neither was even hot down the stretch. They both faltered and almost missed the playoffs entirely. So can't use the narrative either of those teams got hot down the stretch and stormed through the playoffs.

I think pissing away the division gave the Rangers the kick in the ass they needed. But Seager is a baller, Eovaldi seems like a guy with an edge to him, and even though he's been hurt, Scherzer is still a crazy MFer who is great in the right clubhouse. Oh and Bochy has more than proven himself over the course of his career.
 
Why was Morton DL'd in the first place? We could have just toted him and then DL'd him at some point during the series if needed. Just let the staff work on it and skip his starts.

Seems like a poor choice, but the second year in a row we had pitching oddities happen at the last possible moment.

Yeah, I'd love to get more of an answer on this one. Although I'm not sure it really would have made a difference in retrospect. Maybe we lose that game 5-2 or 4-2 instead of 10-2.
 
I still can't believe a team that had 623 extra base hits in the regular season (3.85 per game), had 4 in the entire series.

I've seen postseason efforts from the Braves offense in the past that were frustrating, but that I could understand or rationalize. I'm actually just at a loss for just how much we got shut-down.

There just wasn't even hard hit balls. It was factually just consistent horrible at bats - and against multiple types of pitchers.
 
“The people trying to use the playoff format to make an excuse for the results they don’t like are not confronting the real issue,” Braves pitcher Spencer Strider said. “You’re in control of your focus, your competitiveness, your energy. If having five days means you can’t make the adjustment, you have nobody to blame but yourself.”

While I think Strider said everything as politically correct as you can, he had one week between his final regular season start and his Game 1 NLDS start. A starting pitcher being given a few more days rest even happens in the regular season when Snit was skipping his starts to give him an extra day of rest.

This is entirely different from hitters taking 5+ days off from live in-game pitching. They tried to help with the simulated games in front of fans, but it still doesn't replace pitching against live pitchers in meaningful at-bats.

The reality is, our starting pitching wasn't the issue. Elder should have been used for a few innings only, Hand should probably have been used as an opener, or even AJSS.

I'm still puzzled at Snit's bullpen management. When pressed during the regular season why he doesn't use Minter or Iglesias in high leverage situations when we don't have a lead, he always tells reporters "if I use my best guys almost every night, their arms won't make it to October". Yet many times this season he used Minter and Iglesias 3/4 days 4/5 days. We finally get to October, after almost a full week off, and then have an off day between G1 and G2, then another between G2 and G3, and here he is being conservative in using his bullpen.

Last night he decided to ride Strider to 100 pitches in a win or go home elimination game. Castellanos already homered. Then Strider was allowed to face him again, and gave up another homer to him. Our bullpen was rested with multiple days off in just this series alone. We don't need to discuss Game 3 again. Everyone and Cy's Mother knows the story with Snit's management there. Even having Tonkin come in was inexcusable.
 
I mean be blunt, we were outplayed and outcoached. No way would Snit have used Iglesias to get 4 outs starting in the top of the 7th. Phillies realized how important it was to get out of that inning without giving up a run.
 
“I think that they’ve got a lot of energy, they’ve got a lot of confidence,” Strider said of the Phillies. “We are a really good club at coming to the park every day over the course of the year and letting our talent come out. And I think in the postseason, in such a confined sample size, you’re tossing a lot of those long-term things out the window. And like I said, we’re going to have a chance to improve the way we focus and prepare for the postseason. There’s just no other way around it. It’s a tough reality to confront, but it’s the only way we’re going to change the results."

“The people trying to use the playoff format to make an excuse for the results they don’t like are not confronting the real issue,” Braves pitcher Spencer Strider said. “You’re in control of your focus, your competitiveness, your energy. If having five days means you can’t make the adjustment, you have nobody to blame but yourself.”

This is how a leader talks. I’m glad the Braves have him around for a while.
 
I mean be blunt, we were outplayed and outcoached. No way would Snit have used Iglesias to get 4 outs starting in the top of the 7th. Phillies realized how important it was to get out of that inning without giving up a run.

I call out Snit’s tactical ineptitude almost daily. Why this surprises anyone anymore is baffling.

When top teams play the quality of the decision making is more important than during 162 games. Of course, Roberts is excellent and the Dodgers choke worse than the Braves, so it’s a hard point to argue.
 
Love these quotes from Strider. He‘s right-true champions overcome adversity.
The bit about learning how to prepare and focus for the postseason are not a ringing endorsement of Snit and the coaching staff.
 
I call out Snit’s tactical ineptitude almost daily. Why this surprises anyone anymore is baffling.

When top teams play the quality of the decision making is more important than during 162 games. Of course, Roberts is excellent and the Dodgers choke worse than the Braves, so it’s a hard point to argue.

As it played out, it probably didn‘t matter. The Braves were outplayed too thoroughly. Same for the Dodgers.
But it could have mattered. And it may matter next year.
 
Love these quotes from Strider. He‘s right-true champions overcome adversity.
The bit about learning how to prepare and focus for the postseason are not a ringing endorsement of Snit and the coaching staff.

Strider is a gamer. The rest of the team appears to not be. I won’t be shocked when Strider leaves for a team that has guys that want to win as badly as he does.
 
Speaking of strider... hopefully he can improve the slider and change up this offseason

I would love to see him add a cutter to his arsenal.

He has great velocity so the hitters have to start early to catch up to the fast ball, but if he could add a low to mid 90's cutter, that would be devastating to LHH
 
This is so ****ing overblown. Phillies fans were messing with him and he was heckling back. Him and Acuña were even laughing about it. Y’all need to get a grip. This certainly doesn’t warrant making a whole new thread about it.
 
You don't ****ing say **** to the fans when you're facing elimination. This kind of **** is why the Braves are sitting at home right now. That's really it, though. Don't do it again. Do it again and it needs to be addressed.
 
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