The Philadelphia Phillies stormed into Atlanta with an unusual strategy ahead. They made use of 7 various pitchers to locate some method to squeeze out a shutout versus one of the best offenses baseball has actually ever seen. There's a lot to study with each and every choice Rob Thomson made. Managing a baseball game is type of like playing a game of chess, except that each piece has a human component to it. No person is mosting likely to agree with every decision but the factor of this is to describe the reasoning due to the fact that this was a carefully taken care of game by among the finest in the sport. Beginning Ranger SurezThis might appear unusual yet this had not been some automated decision at very first. Not only are they the most effective first-inning violation in baseball, however they're also the finest against left-handed throwing. There were genuine debates to opt for an opener that consisted of the similarity "Supreme Blog Site Lord" Ethan Witte and Matt Gelb of The Athletic. This is where we see the human side of Thomson. He didn't tell Surez anything would certainly be various concerning this start. Topper desired his man to feel as comfortable as possible.Rob Thomson offers an intriguing answer when inquired about telling Ranger he would draw him early vs. not informing Ranger. He chose not to, clearly-- here's his thinking. 1% so Hoffman had the ability to work in nasty splitters for the strike out. Seranthony Dominguez for the fifthThere's an excellent argument for Jeff Hoffman to come back out but he did get an important out in the fourth. Wherever you stand on that, this was the place to make use of Dominguez if you were ever before going to utilize him. The bottom three hitters in the Braves schedule were due up. Orlando Arcia has actually a. 674 OPS versus right-handed pitching, Sean Murphy was moved to eighth after a. 669 OPS the last two months of the season Noah Song Jersey, and you obtain the Eddie RosarioKevin Pillar army out of the means. Things really did not go well early for Dominguez with a solitary by Arcia however he obtained the battling Murphy on a heater. There was a suspicious 0-2 heater when Rosario has the third-worst chase rate in the sporting activity which put runners on first and third. The strategy went south with Dominguez facing Ronald Acua Jr. and Austin Riley at the top of the order. This is where you need to credit Dominguez for having the ability to battle when he's not had one of the most successful season of his occupation. He really did not trust his slider at all, throwing it simply 2 times in 22 pitches. He fought with Acua and Riley to keep the Braves scoreless. Jos Alvarado for the sixthNot every little thing mosts likely to plan for a manager but this is where we see Thomson's one-of-a-kind method of taking care of a bullpen. With Matt Olson, Ozzie Albies, and Marcell Ozuna due up in the 6th, they ask Jos Alvarado to take the sphere. Harper added a homer in the top fifty percent of the inning to offer them a two-nothing lead but the thinking is still the same. Thomson pressed his leading arms previously in the video game to give his offense as much time as feasible to rack up runs. With four innings needing to be covered whatever, it's wise to use Alvarado against the middle of their order and when the video game is close. Rather than choosing Matt Strahm, Gregory Soto Tim McCarver Jersey, or Orion Kerkering currently, you provide the infraction time to enhance their lead. Orion Kerkering for the seventhRob Thomson appears to have some type of trend with relying on young players in crucial spots. His very first game ever before as supervisor included Nick Maton, Bryson Stott, and Mickey Moniak done in the lineup. He would certainly later on strike Darick Hall cleanup in his major organization launching and hand Bryson Stott the everyday function at shortstop. This year, he has Johan Rojas in center area daily and he's asking Orion Kerkering to pitch a vital seventh inning in the playoffs. The logic is comparable to Dominguez in the 5th inning. The lower 3 of the Braves' order were due up so Kerkering would have the army benefit for 2 of the 3 hitters. His sweeper was additionally an excellent competition for Rosario with just how much he swings out of the strike zone. It worked to perfection with a one-two-three inning. Kerkering looked like a ten-year veteran with his calmness and the Braves didn't recognize what to do with his sweeper. The eighth inningAfter a lengthy sequence in between innings that consisted of a catcher disturbance to give the Phillies a three-nothing lead, Kerkering returned out for Acua.The bullpen at this factor is down to Strahm, Soto, and Kimbrel as potential back-end alternatives and Thomson most likely didn't desire to make use of Kimbrel for the top of their order. An advantage Kerkering will have the remainder of this collection is that the Braves have not truly seen him before and it is most likely why he returned out for the eighth. The layoff may've been too long as he walked Acua on four pitches and they gave the sphere to Matt Strahm.It does not make a lots of sense on the surface area to bring a lefty in for Austin Riley yet when you dive deeper right into the numbers Bob Boone Jersey, it's rational. Riley struggles against four-seam fastballs with a punching percentage under.500 and a strikeout price close to 30%. Opposing players have just a. 187 batting average versus Strahm's four-seam fastball. He just didn't have the rate today and Riley pulled a single to limbo. Matt Olson is just as good as any kind of player on earth but does have at least one minor weakness. He's had far much less success versus lefties this year with an OPS under 800. Strahm won the fight after Olson hardly missed out on a fastball and flew out to facility. They were able to obtain out of the inning with a fantastic double play by Trea Turner that would provide the Phillies at least a three-run lead for Craig Kimbrel in the 9th. The gamers are always the ones who implement so you can't totally credit report a manager for winning or shedding a video game however last night is why you use Rob Thomson. They went into this video game with their number three starter, dealing with one of the best offenses in baseball background, with Spencer Strider on the mound, and walked away with a shutout victory. A potential series-shifting game with Zack Wheeler set up to start game two. The difference in between heaven Jays drawing Jos Berrios and the Phillies pulling Ranger Surez is concerning the basic understanding of what high leverage is. One team went to a different beginning pitcher and the various other team went to one of the ideal right-handed relievers in the National League.Rob Thomson might not just be the best manager in the National Organization however he's the most effective in the entire sporting activity.