Is Tram’s time up?
(sorry for yet another sports post… just too busy right now to write about anything else)
So, here we are: it’s late-mid August, and the Tigers – a team with much promise – is practically out of the running altogether. The only thing that can save them at this point in the season is a superhuman run AND help from other faltering clubs. They sit 5 games under .500 – again.
And Tiger fans are playing ‘six degrees of separation’ with Alan Trammell.
Lately, Alan Trammell has taken a LOT of heat from a lot of fans for issues ranging from pitching changes to a lack of body armor for our troops. But, honestly, some is deserved. His passive attitude toward pitching changes (when everyone watching the game can see the pitcher is dying a slow, hard death) has cost more than a few late leads. Does his rep/attitude as a players’ coach come in to play here? Is he wary of replacing a pitcher too early?
I firmly believe Tram has to get this team over .500 to survive the off-season. One game under, and he should be fired. Is it fair? Probably not. As a former hockey coach, I can’t start to tell you the number of variables go in to what REALLY produces wins and losses – and the truth is that the coach can’t control at least 50% of those. There have been VERY substantial injuries (Pudge, Percival, Guillen, etc.) whose impact should not be overlooked. However, the firepower within the order can’t be excused – this team should rarely ever score less than 4-5 runs. With a solid pitching staff, that should produce wins. It hasn’t happened.
What will happen? Should he be fired?
I love Alan Trammell, but he just is not a good manager yet and the whole thing of hiring him was just a PR move. I was afraid of this before his first season as manager started. Two years as first base coach for the Padres doesn’t give nearly enough experience to manage a stuggling big league club.
Now Yankees fans are calling for Joe Torre to get the hook. Its unfortunate how coaching staff is always the first to blame when something goes wrong, but that’s part of the business. I know its a huge longshot, but wouldn’t it be something if Torre and the Tigers stuck a deal! Pudge and Percival were long shots, and they worked out (but not as well as we thought).
i love this blog!