Ken Davidoff

Ken Davidoff

MLB

Extra hooks, short leashes in hyper-managed playoffs

DETROIT — Heading to San Francisco later in preparation for Thursday’s ALDS Game 5 between the Tigers and A’s, which should be fun. Here’s my Tuesday column on how Jhonny Peralta might be playing his way out of the bargain bin.

Right now, though, I want to discuss what seems to be a trend, of course with sample size kept in mind. In these Division Series, we’ve seen some very aggressive managing — notably more aggressive, I’d contend, than in past years.

To wit:

1. In Game 4, which I covered Tuesday, Tigers manager Jim Leyland designated his Game 1 starter and winner Max Scherzer for bullpen duty. Scherzer gave up a tiebreaking run in the seventh and then worked through a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the eighth to get his second victory of the series.

2. In Game 4 of Red Sox-Rays Tuesday night, Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon went on a pitching-change bender, lifting his starter Jeremy Hellickson with no outs in the second inning and using a total of nine pitchers — with a 10th pitcher, presumed Game 5 starter David Price, warming up in the bullpen. It all went for naught as the Rays lost, 3-1, and are done.

3. The Dodgers advanced past the Braves while using their Game 1 starter and winner Clayton Kershaw to start Game 4 on three days’ rest. Kershaw threw six solid innings and left the game tied at 2-2, and the Dodgers won the game (and the series) on Juan Uribe’s eighth-inning homer.

In less dramatic but still interesting developments, the Pirates booted their Game 1 starter and loser A.J. Burnett in favor of rookie Gerrit Cole for Wednesday night’s winner-take-all Game 5. And in Tuesday’s post-game news conference, Oakland manager Bob Melvin said he hadn’t decided yet who would start Game 5, which is a slap at Game 1 starter and loser Bartolo Colon and an endorsement of Game 2 starter Sonny Gray, who pitched extremely well (and got a no-decision) in his first career postseason appearance.

So what to make of all this? There are two clear causes:

1. The two off days within a five-game series, which existed from 2007 through 2011 and now again this year (and is set to keep going this way), allows teams to be more creative and aggressive. By having days off between Games 2 and 3 and then again between Games 4 and 5, your Game 1 starter would have five days’ rest for Game 5 and your Game 2 starter four days’ rest.

That’s just a function of schedule. Last year was the aberration because Major League Baseball implemented the second wild card after it had drawn up a regular-season schedule, and that caused the players and teams to agree to a 2-3 schedule with one off day, rather than 2-2-1 with two off days, for the 2012 Division Series.

2. “But Ken,” you’re responding (and please, call me Ken), “I don’t remember this many maneuvers from ’07 through ’11, when we saw the same 2-2-1 format with two off days.”

I agree. I don’t remember it, either. And I think this speaks to the increasing dominance of pitching in today’s game.

As Joel Sherman wrote on Monday, pitching is king more than ever. Five years ago, the best pitching team in baseball was the Blue Jays, who allowed 610 runs. This year, six teams allowed fewer than 610 runs: the Braves (548), Pirates (577), Dodgers (582), Reds (589), Cardinals (596) and Royals (601).

Accordingly, these playoff teams feature many good pitching options.

So Leyland can use Scherzer, the favorite for this year’s AL Cy Young Award, as a reliever because he has 2011 AL Cy Young (and Most Valuable Player) Justin Verlander ready for Game 5 on normal rest after starting Game 2. Dodgers skipper Don Mattingly can roll the dice on Kershaw pitching Game 4, going for the kill, because he had his Game 2 starter Zack Greinke ready for Game 5 — and now NLCS Game 1. Maddon had his Game 2 starter Price, last year’s AL Cy Young, ready for Game 5 until things got out of hand.

There’s less of a risk in using an elite pitcher out of his comfort zone, be it a short-rest start or a bullpen appearance, when you have another elite pitcher behind him. That’s why I think these managers seem to be developing da noive.

Have a great day.