Old School, New School

The old and new ways of running a baseball team went on full display Monday night at Guaranteed Rate Whatever when the White Sox faced off against the Orioles.  With the Sox down 3-2 in the bottom of the sixth and runners in scoring position, catcher Wellington Castillo failed to run out a popup.  That did not sit well with manager Rick Renteria.

So, he pulled Castillo and put in Omar Narvaez.  As much as I applaud the move, I have to wonder—when will players on this team realize their manager wants them to run everything out?  This is Renteria’s second year managing on the South Side.  Before Castillo, Renteria already had pulled three players during his tenure on the South Side, one each last year, this spring training and earlier in the season.  How exactly do you send a message to people who don’t look to be paying attention? 

Now fast-forward to the bottom of the ninth innings, score still 3-2, two out and runners on the corners.  Rather than face Jose Abreu, who was two for four, Baltimore manager Buck Showalter opted to walk Abreu, thereby putting the winning run at second base.  Why?  Because Showalter knew Renteria had next to nobody left on the bench.  That’s the problem with a 13-man pitching staff like the Sox have.

Next up after Abreu was Trayce Thompson, a defensive replacement for Daniel Palka (good bat, bad glove).  The only non-pitcher alternative to Thompson was infielder Jose Rondon, who has never played outfield in his professional career.  Me, I would’ve rolled the dice with Rondon and asked for volunteers for the outfield if the Sox had tied the game.  Renteria stuck with Thompson, who struck out, putting his batting average at .119.

If you’re going to go old school, go all the way.  It’ll mean more bats available for crunch-time.