Not Happy with Davey Johnson

When the Nats announced that Davey Johnson would be the new manager, I was pleased. He's been a great manager in the past. I'm not one to criticize managers, but Johnson's tenure has, for some reason, seen me wax nostalgic about the great Bobby Cox.

Before the Nats came to DC, I was a Braves fan. I didn't appreciate the greatness of Bobby Cox until the Nats moved to town. Johnson's time as manager has had me thinking about Bobby Cox often.

When Cox had a young potential star come up to the big leagues, he knew how to use him properly. At first, he put the player in positions that would give a greater chance for success. As the player succeeded in those situations, his role grew.

Johnson doesn't have the same strategy. While most starting pitchers, especially Stephen Strasburg, are being unnecessarily babied, Brad Peacock made his major league debut in an impossible situation. I don't believe that the number of pitches thrown increases the likelihood of re-injury for Jordan Zimmermann or Strasburg. If they're going to get injured, it could come on the next pitch or a million pitches from now. They’ve succeeded in the 5 or 6 innings and 1 or 2 runs role; they need to learn how to pitch in the 8th inning of a close game when they've faced the opponent's lineup three times already. They're not being prepped for that situation.

Cox understood that confidence was very important for a young player to have. Johnson misses this point completely. He criticized an unnamed manager for pinch hitting for a young player in a key situation recently, arguing that he would want to see what the player has. Peacock, a career starter in the minors, is supposed to be a future stalwart in the rotation, but made his debut with runners on base in a 3-1 game facing Matt Kemp. Of course, Peacock failed. Johnson had set him up to do so. Peacock makes his first start tomorrow. Hopefully, he has forgotten that first taste of the majors.

The best team in the league will lose around 60 games a year. There are productive losses. Sometimes you sacrifice a starter or relief pitcher to rest the bullpen for tomorrow. This concept is totally lost on Johnson. He takes out Livan Hernandez if he's given up 3 or 4 runs in the 4th or 5th inning. It kills the bullpen, not just for today, but for the week. Cox knew how to play for today and tomorrow.

Oh Bobby Cox, any interest in taking the Nats job next season? Pretty please?