Joe Torre Winning Series with His Bullpen Management

With Mark Loretta’s bloop single to center in the bottom of the ninth inning, the Los Angeles Dodgers took a 2-0 lead in the Division Series against the St. Louis Cardinals. Lost in the Dodgers’ improbable comeback that began with a Matt Holliday dropped fly ball with two outs in the inning was the fact that Joe Torre made a decision that most Managers, even the one across the field, would never have made. With Albert Pujols, Matt Holliday, and Ryan Ludwick coming to bat in the top of the eighth inning and the Dodgers trailing 2-1, Torre called on his closer, Jonathan Broxton to pitch to the heart of the order. While that decision may seem easy considering it is the playoffs, it is one that no other Manager would make when considering how specialized the bullpen has become and that Broxton would most likely be removed for a pinch hitter the following inning. The decision serves as a reminder of an overlooked skill that Joe Torre possesses as a Manager. It served him well in New York during the 90’s and he seems to be operating the same way in Los Angeles. It seems as if Joe Torre may have re-discovered himself circa 1996.

When Joe Torre’s qualifications as a Manager are discussed, the first discussion usually revolves around his handling of the clubhouse, the media, and his demeanor.  Like most Managers, he is often criticized for his tactical decisions. Those criticisms often refer to Torre as a Manager who simply filled out the lineup card and watches his team slug it out. Surely, the Yankees of 2002 through 2007 helped carve that reputation as they were plodding, station-to-station type teams that rarely used any type of small ball. Torre was also criticized for burning out relief pitchers such as Scott Proctor and Tom Gordon. While true, one often forgets that he had so few quality options to work with, therefore relying upon his best to win.

The early 2000’s Joe Torre may have been a product of the teams given to him or he may have fallen into the trap of relying upon “his guys”, but he was definitely less active later in his Yankees’ tenure. Many forget that the 1996 version of Joe Torre benched Tino Martinez and Wade Boggs during the World Series, even though they were facing a right-handed pitcher. It is easy to forget that Torre was the Manager who played matchups with Graeme Lloyd, Brian Boehringer, Jeff Nelson, Ramiro Mendoza, Mike Stanton and Mariano Rivera (the setup version). Torre was active and often would remove his starting pitcher in post-season games a bit early in order to keep the game close. Torre explains that his former Bench Coach, Don Zimmer, pointed out the importance of being aggressive with the bullpen in the playoffs. “Don Zimmer taught me that this post season stuff is all about not being patient and doing what you feel you need to do at the time you need to do it”.

Surely, Joe Torre’s handling of the bullpen during the regular season can be questioned, but there is no argument about his post-season management. Torre’s history of handling bullpens is needed with this Dodgers team more so than any other team Torre has managed. Game one of the Division Series is a prime example as Randy Wolf simply had an off game. Torre fashioned 5.1 innings of one run relief out of his bullpen. Last night, he pushed Clayton Kershaw through 107 pitches before calling on Ronald Belisario to finish the seventh. It was then that Torre decided to bring Broxton into the game, despite being behind by a run. The move won’t really be discussed because of the aforementioned events of the bottom of the ninth, but having Broxton pitch to the heart of the Cardinals’ order helped preserve the one run deficit (In fact, it wasn’t asked of him during the post-game press conference). Perhaps another pitcher could’ve accomplished the same feat, but the idea is that Broxton gives the team the best shot for having a clean inning facing that part of the order. Most Managers save the closer for the ninth inning, fearing that nobody would be able to close or fearing the post-game press conference littered with questions as to why he “wasted” his closer.

Torre had no such fear as he simply put Broxton in the to finish the 8^th knowing full well that if the Dodgers were to tie or win the score in the bottom of the 8^th, he would have to pinch hit for him (he was due up fourth in the inning). The Dodgers didn’t score, but Broxton needed to be pinched hit for. Jim Thome ended up getting hit with the pitch, but the Dodgers ultimately failed to score. Torre went to George Sherrill to shut down the bottom portion of the Cardinals’ lineup. Without Torre’s decision to use his best pitcher in the most important circumstance, the Dodgers may have fallen behind by more than a run, making a ninth inning, dramatic comeback less likely. It certainly isn’t hyperbole; perhaps Belisario or even Sherrill could’ve gotten through Pujols, Holliday, and Ludwick. But, with their three best hitters (all right-handers), Torre decided not to chance giving away a playoff game. Broxton won’t get a save for his eighth inning, but he certainly saved the game to allow the Dodgers to comeback.

Torre’s skill at handling a bullpen is especially important this post-season. The Dodgers have a good, dynamic offense that led the National League in batting average and on base percentage. But, they lack that dominant starting pitcher (or two) needed to be a dangerous post-season team. Clayton Kershaw could be that pitcher at 21 years old, but it is too early to tell. It’s not Randy Wolf, Vicente Padilla, or even Chad Billingsley, who has struggled in the second half of the season. What they do have is a deep bullpen capable of delivering five-plus innings of relief as they did in game one. Torre’s job is to maximize their ability. Yes, his reputation of burning out relievers draws snickers, but his experience of mixing and matching, and most importantly, finding favorable matchups is important here. Not being able to count on his pitchers to go deep into games, Torre has enough arms to continue to win, however unconventional it is. Broxton, Sherrill, Belisario, Hong-Chih Kuo, Ramon Troncoso, Jeff Weaver, and Jon Garland all have ERA’s under 3.00. They are a talented group capable of giving multiple innings (Weaver and Garland), playing the matchup game (Kuo, .152/.282/.242 vs. LH), and capable of getting strikeouts (all of them average over 6.0 strikeouts per nine innings).

Joe Torre will never be mistaken as the greatest in-game tactician. But, he was once an aggressive Manager early in his Yankees’ tenure when he didn’t have the highest paid talent. He seems to have rediscovered that quality. Lifting Randy Wolf after 3.2 innings when he very easily could’ve righted the ship was that type of aggressive decision in the playoffs. His use of five relievers to get the final 16 outs was, quite frankly, masterful. It remains to be seen if the Dodgers’ lack of quality, strikeout starters will be their ruin this post-season. If they can simply be average, Torre has the bullpen and the management skills to ride that group of relievers all the way to the World Series.

Popularity: 2% [?]