Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Excerpt: "The Kimbrel Opportunity"

"The Braves have an opportunity here. This isn't about bringing back the fireman; it's about taking the 70 innings that Kimbrel is going to throw anyway and applying them in a way that doesn't change his job one iota, but gives the Braves a better chance to win games. It's small changes. It's looking ahead in the seventh inning at the middle of the lineup coming up in the eighth, and choosing to use Kimbrel against it, rather than saving him for the bottom of the order in the ninth. It's getting him into a tied game in the eighth inning, or on the road in the ninth, rather than holding him out for a save situation. It's bringing him in, as necessary, to apply his preternatural bat-missing ability in spots where missing bats is paramount, as opposed to when all outs are created equal."