Kevork Djansezian/Getty ImagesMLB playoff subterfuge reached critical mass Wednesday in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series
between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Milwaukee Brewers.Brewers manager Craig
Counsell removed starting pitcher Wade Miley after he threw just five pitches.
According to The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal
Eric Sogard Jersey , that was all part ofCounsell's strategy:Ken Rosenthal Ken_RosenthalRemoving Miley was Brewers??plan. He will start Game 6.Brandon
Woodruff came on in relief and pitched a scoreless first inning.Plenty of
writers had fun with Counsell's unique approach:Joe Sheehan
joe_sheehanquot;Wade, what kind of stuff did you have out there today?quot;Bill
Plunkett billplunkettocrFor all of you old-schoolers who think todays starting
pitchers are coddled -- Wade Miley will probably start consecutive games in this
#NLCS.Satisfied?joon joonleewade miley ellXjan1NFD.J. Short djshortAnother
scoreless start for Wade Miley, wowCounsell has pushed the idea of "bullpenning"
to its extreme throughout the postseason.Entering Wednesday, the trio of
Miley
Keon Broxton Jersey , Jhoulys Chacin and Gio Gonzalez had combined to pitch 23.2 innings in six games.Taking Miley out of the game so quickly is
obviously risky, but Counsell's thinking is easy to understand. Dodgers manager
Dave Roberts will have built his starting lineup around facing a left-handed
starter. Instead, Los Angeles gets the right-handed Woodruff.GiveCounsell credit
for thinking outside the box, though he'll likely face a lot of criticism if the
Brewers drop Game 5 and fall behind 3-2 in the series. A look at what’s
happening around the majors today:OPENER FOR THE OPENERThe Brewers will begin
their NL Division Series against the Rockies with a bullpen game at Miller Park.
Manager Craig Counsell said Wednesday he had not decided on the order of his
relievers. The group will almost certainly include All-Star left-hander Josh
Hader
http://www.brewersfanproshop.com/authentic-zach-davies-jersey , though Colorado will have a tough test start to finish — Milwaukee led the
majors with a 1.98 bullpen ERA in September.Colorado counters with Antonio
Senzatela, a right-hander who is 6-6 with a 4.38 ERA in 23 games, including 13
starts. It will be the postseason debut for the 23-year-old.THE ACE AWAITSThe
Braves and Dodgers open their NLDS in Los Angeles, and Atlanta has a chance to
jump ahead before facing Clayton Kershaw in Game 2. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts
decided to hold back his ace left-hander and will instead start Hyun-Jin Ryu in
Game 1. The left-handed Ryu was 7-3 with a 1.97 ERA in 15 starts this
season.Mike Foltynewicz is up for the Braves. The hard-throwing right-hander put
it all together this season
Brent Suter Jersey , posting career bests with a 2.85 ERA over 183 innings. Atlanta might be without shortstop Dansby Swanson, who appears a long shot to
make the team’s roster after partially tearing a ligament in his left hand last
month.RIVALRY RENEWEDThe Yankees are headed up to Fenway Park ahead of their AL
Division Series opener against the Red Sox on Friday night. It’s the first time
New York and Boston will clash in the postseason since the 2004 AL Championship
Series. The Yankees beat the Athletics 7-2 Wednesday night in the AL wild-card
game to set up the AL East showdown.Boston manager Alex Cora said Wednesday he
was still deciding on his bullpen alignment for the ALDS. He has two spots
available to righties Joe Kelly, Heath Hembree, Brandon Workman and lefty Bobby
Poyner. Relief was the biggest weakness for the team while it won a
franchise-record 108 games. The Red Sox had an AL-worst 4.84 ERA in
September.TAKE YOUR PICKRajai Davis has his name cemented in October baseball
lore
Boone Logan Jersey , but it might not be on Cleveland’s playoff roster this year. Indians manager Terry Francona has one spot left on his 25-man roster for
the AL Division Series against the Houston Astros and it will go to either Davis
or utility infielder Erik Gonzalez.“We’re debating the last spot,” Francona said
Wednesday. “We’re going back and forth.”The Indians will open the ALDS in
Houston on Friday and Francona must submit his roster to Major League Baseball
by 10 a.m. that morning for the best-of-five series.SUSPENDEDAddison Russell’s
future with the Cubs is in question after Major League Baseball suspended the
Chicago shortstop 40 games for violating the league’s domestic violence policy
after a series of allegations made by his ex-wife. Russell’s unpaid suspension
includes the 11 regular-season games he missed after being placed on
administrative leave Sept. 21.Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein
said he’s not sure what the odds are of Russell playing another game for the
Cubs.“Domestic violence is everyone’s problem,” he said. “Because of that, we
all have an obligation to be part of the solution as well. The discipline in a
case like this is part of the solution going forward and so we support Major
League Baseball’s decision and we think it’s appropriate. But prevention is also
a big part of the solution and maybe a more important solution.”PASSING THE
BUCKThe Orioles are beginning a search for a new manager and general manager a
day after firing Buck Showalter and Dan Duquette. Baltimore staggered through
its worst season since the team moved to Baltimore in 1954
http://www.brewersfanproshop.com/authentic-josh-hader-jersey , losing a franchise-record 115 games. The club wants fresh faces to take over a
potentially long rebuilding project. Director of Player Development Brian Graham
will handle day-to-day oversight of baseball operations while the Orioles search
for Duquette’s successor.
