(670 The Score) For kings and MLB managers, heavy is the head that wears the crown.
Such was the case for White Sox manager Tony La Russa after his decisions backfired in a 5-2 loss to the Tigers on Tuesday evening, when he rode ace Lucas Giolito in the seventh inning as Detroit scored three game-changing runs. After the game, Giolito admitted he had little left in the tank in the seventh inning as the Tigers got the best of him and the White Sox.
Giolito had thrown 87 pitches through six strong innings of one-run ball. He then walked the leadoff hitter in the seventh inning and induced a flyout before allowing a game-tying double and then the go-ahead two-run homer. Even after that, La Russa kept Giolito in for two more batters.
As it pertained to the Tigers’ game-changing hits, La Russa was surprised that Giolito felt that he was gassed, citing a conversation that Giolito had with pitching coach Ethan Katz just before.
“I know Ethan talked to him between innings and there was no mention (of fatigue),” La Russa said. “So you can say walking the first guy made him agitated. That might have been a tip-off. But at the end, I said at the time with the extra rest he had, I felt confident he could get it done. I was surprised, as you could tell, that he said he was running out of gas. The buck passes to the guy who makes the decision. That is me. So I take the responsibility.”
After the loss Tuesday night, La Russa promised to go back and review tape to see if there was a sign from Giolito’s performance that he missed that would’ve indicated he was spent. Giolito ended up throwing 114 pitches in 6 2/3 innings.
"I did look at it, and I was paying attention during the game,” La Russa said. “I want you to understand when it's over, we didn't make a mistake or anything because I was falling asleep or anything. The thing you looked at the most was the inning before. The sixth inning was not an easy one for him.
But he came back and punched out the cleanup hitter.”
Bruce Levine covers the Cubs and White Sox for 670 The Score. Follow him on Twitter @MLBBruceLevine.