Managers’ decisions are under the microscope in any game, but especially in short five-game or seven-game series.
Aaron Boone caught some flak for the adjustments he made to the Yankees lineup in the playoffs, particularly in the four-game sweep against the Astros.
Aaron Judge spent most of the season hitting in the two-hole, starting 112 games there as opposed to 34 games leading off while chasing the home run record in September. Judge hit second in all four games against the Astros, but the pieces around him shifted with Gleyber Torres, Harrison Bader, and Anthony Rizzo batting leadoff in the final three games of their season.
On the pitching side of things, deciding to pull a starting pitcher early or stick with a relief pitcher could be the difference between advancing and going home. Phillies manager Rob Thomson risked throwing Seranthony Dominguez for two innings in Game 3 and it paid off.
Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora joined the new Audacy Original Podcast “Baseball Isn’t Boring” and talked about how managers handle things in the playoffs and the World Series, and gave his take on both Boone and Thomson.
“You cannot be afraid to make adjustments throughout,” Cora said (37:33 in player above). “I know a lot of people get on Boone because of what happened, but he was trying to find the perfect matchups, right? The perfect lineup to go against probably the best pitching staff in the big leagues this season. It looks bad, but you have to be able to change it because they saw it.”
Boone and the Yankees saw that they needed to make adjustments. Judge was moved up a spot in September as he chased the home run record and Boone shifted the lineup around in the postseason.
“I think they saw it towards the end of the season it was a one-man show, right, but that guy was trying to hit 62 home runs so he led off because of that. I think that’s the way it works and there are a lot of people that get involved.”
Cora understood the difficulty of Boone’s decisions because he’s been there before. He won the World Series in 2017 with the Houston Astros and 2018 with the Red Sox. He’s had to make difficult decisions both in the lineup and in the bullpen.
“The pitching side of it is the one that, especially now, is very tough because you cannot mix and match like in ‘18. Now it’s a three-batter minimum. It’s a lot tougher,” he said. “But you saw what Thomson did with Seranthony in (Game 3). He went for the jugular. He’s going two innings regardless of what happens. He went two, we’ll find a way to win the next one. I think that’s something, too. It’s not about forgetting the player or the health, it’s about remembering what you’re doing it for.”
While Boone and the Yankees were eliminated in the ALCS, Thomson and the Phillies advanced past the Padres in the NLCS thanks to some clutch hitting and that decision to let Dominguez loose.
The Phillies face off against the Astros in the World Series with Game 1 on Friday night in Houston.
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