Perfectly done: I recently heard Jim Rome blast the Phillies’ no-hitter, basically saying it was not a true no-no because the Phillies decided to use multiple pitchers in the combined effort. This would imply that Ryne Sandberg was in the wrong for not having starter Cole Hamels make the complete game effort. To that, I say you cannot argue with Ryno’s results. Every decision in that game was perfect. I was nervous when he did not allow Jake Diekman to stay in and face the two left-handed hitters coming up in the eighth inning, but kudos to him in trusting his young stud, Ken Giles. The rookie came in and struck out all three batters he faced. To seal the deal, the Phills gave Jonathan Papelbon the option of pitching the ninth, and the ace closer accepted the challenge, and shut the door.
Lost in Sandberg’s decisions to handle the bullpen that way was his decision to upgrade the right side of the infield defensively. Ryan Howard and Chase Utley have long anchored that department of the field in any big Phillies game since 2006, but they’ve played in their share of no-hitters, thanks to Roy Halladay (and Kevin Millwood for Utley), so that probably made the decision to lift them for the not-so-experienced Freddy Galvis and Darin Ruf. As it would happen, the final out was recorded by Ruf, and no Phillie fan can say with any type of confidence that any play to first base “Ryan Howard would have surely handled that”. Overall, it was a perfect game from the skipper.
Ryan Howard/Dom Brown: Matt Gelb in an article this week insinuated that it is not up to the manager on who is in the lineup every day. Dom Brown echoed those comments when saying that Ryno is “Just the manager, you know?”. Well, no, I don’t know what that even means, but Brown has never struck me as a genius. The fact that a manager would sign up for being a “yes man” and not have any control on his team is absolutely ridiculous. Is Sandberg that much of a shill that he would sit there and let Ruben Amaro Jr., who showed his ability to evaluate players in acting like Dom Brown is the second coming of Barry Bonds, run his team? How would the players ever respect that? If that is the case, and I don’t think it is, Sandberg needs to take pride in his job and take a stand and voice what he thinks is best for the team. What’s lost in all this though is that playing Grady Sizemore and Darin Ruf over Dom Brown has proven to be a wise decision. This is one of those scenarios that if it really were the case, we will hear about it at least once more before the end of the season.
Playing Spoiler: Plenty of teams, if in the position the Phillies are in, would roll over and just go through the motions until the season officially ends. Last season, in the final few weeks, the Phillies themselves did this under Ryne Sandberg. But lately, the team, well out of playoff contention, has been playing hard and much better baseball. In fact, they had their first winning month since September 2012. That’s a credit to the players, but also Ryne Sandberg. Ryno has kept the “win every game” approach and the players have followed his lead. While they are still evaluating certain positions, the manager is doing everything he can to win ballgames, and it is working. The Phills are in your traditional "spoiler" role, having recently taken series from contending teams such as the Cardinals, Mariners, Nationals, and Braves. They will have a chance to keep playing that role with upcoming series against Washington, Pittsburgh, Miami and Oakland.
