The Best of RG

When Resident Genius Jim Tracy arrived in Pittsburgh to take over the reins of the team, he was vocal in his desire to change the way the team approached the game of baseball. He stressed accountability and declared that the days of accepting losing in Pittsburgh were over.

So it was with surprise that The Buccin' Ear noted this comment from RG that followed the Pirates' latest loss, yet another of the one-run variety, to the Tigers Sunday. The Pirates, who have become jazz musicians endlessly riffing on the theme of the close-but-not-cigar game, trailed this one by seven before getting back six -- but only six.

Quoth RG: "This was just a terrific comeback, again. Unfortunately, it fell short. To come back after trailing 9-2 so late in the game as we were and given their bullpen, which has been so special to get them off to the start they are off to, it is big. We were in a position to tie the game once in the later innings then in the position in the ninth inning to win. We just couldn't get the hit. We couldn't get the sacrifice fly."

So what is the message here? Sounds to me like RG is providing a soothing pat on the back to his team, telling them not to feel bad, they tried, they gave it all they had, but gosh darnit, things just won't go their way.

Hey, the Buccin' Ear is all for keeping a losing team's morale up. Trouble is, RG swings between taking shots at players (see Jack Wilson and Mike Gonzales), making excuses for his own questionable decision making and offering this kind of empty encouragement. In the Buccin' Ear's book, an effective manager finds a way to encase his lash on the team in velvet -- good job coming back, but what the hell were we doing falling behind by seven in the first place? Nice job, Ian Snell, pitching three scoreless innings after giving up four in the first two, but you and I are going to find a way to put an end to the bad innings that are ruining your games.

To illustrate the way a top-flight manager handles a team, here's what Tigers skipper Jim Leyland told Post-Gazette writer Paul Meyer in a recent interview. Leyland was discussing an early-season tantrum triggered by a loss that featured irritating play from his team.

"They played hard that day. It wasn't that," Leyland said. "It was just that it was like, 'Well, we're behind. I'm going to hit a cheap home run.' We kept popping balls up to the outfield.

"I said, 'That's just not going to be tolerated. We don't play the game that way.' "
And Leyland made his point.

"I don't think you ever plan those things. You just react," Leyland said. "You know, every once in a while, you say, 'Shut the doors. I've seen enough of this [act].' It wasn't pretty."

The Tigers, duly chastised, went 6-3 on their trip to Oakland, Seattle and Anaheim. That made their record 13-9.

"But I don't think that [meeting] had [anything] to do with it," Leyland said. "You just have to do what you feel. That's what managing is. You get a feel for something -- good or bad -- and you have to handle it. I wasn't just going to let it slide."

Long-time Pirates fans will remember spring training of '91. The team was coming off an NL East championship, and reigning MVP Barry Bonds' head had gotten a little big. (Hard to believe, I know.) Leyland ignored Bonds' behavior for about a week before he upbraided the player in full view of players, fans and media. End of problem.

"I just wasn't going to let it slide."

To counter that quote, we have another gem from RG, this one on the heels of a carbon-copy one-run loss to the Tigers to open the weekend set. The Pirates fell behind by five in that one, only to get back -- you guessed it -- four.

The post-game blather began with rookie reliever Matt Capps, who at least can be forgiven for trying to buck himself up in the midst of a horrible season. From the Post-Gazette:

"We never hang our heads," Capps said. "And that's how it's been all year: We get into some trouble early on, but we get back into it, no matter what the score is, no matter who we're facing."

One would be looking for the manager to give his young player some guidance, words along the lines of, "It's fine to make a comeback. But we need to find ways to stay in the game early."

No, RG offered another variation on the "Gosh darn we're close" theme:

"It was a tremendous comeback," Tracy said. "And it's a tremendous effort when you consider how the early part of the game went."

So the Buccin' Ear, following the lead of RG, has this to say to the Buccos: keep it up guys. You are on track to become the gosh-darn best 105-loss team in Major League Baseball history. Quite an accomplishment.