I saw the argument in the game thread....

[veryzer]

it was a good call. if fontenot makes any kind of contact, the game is over and lou is a genious. the astros were completely caught by surprise. fontenot is a fucking idiot for not being able to bunt a fastball right down the middle. fuck fontenot, not lou.

[Jody]

+1

[BT]

I think Lou was pissed off. They asked him about it in the post game, and all he could really say was that it was a good pitch to bunt, and that Fontenot HAS to at least foul it off.

[The Dude]

I didn't see the game thread, but I'm not sure how anyone could say it was a bad call.... Of course, I'm in favor of using the squeeze pretty much whenever possible.

[Bricklayer]

The baseball tonight guys pretty much said the same thing, it was Fontenot's fault. They even broke down how badly his bunt attempt was. How he was late squaring off, how his body was shifting away from the pitch, it was bad all around.

In that situation the important thing is to get the bunt down, regardless of the location, even if it was right back at the pitcher. Don't pop it up and don't miss it.

[Coldneck]

<!--quoteo(post=52644:date=Jul 28 2009, 09:45 AM:name=The Dude)-->QUOTE (The Dude @ Jul 28 2009, 09:45 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->I didn't see the game thread, but I'm not sure how anyone could say it was a bad call.... Of course, I'm in favor of using the squeeze pretty much whenever possible.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->

You should read the game thread. Many of us were pissed Font was put in to PH instead of Fox, not the Lou called for a squeeze once Font was put into the game (although that could be argued as well since all we needed was a walk, a fly ball, or a grounder to the middle infield and the game was won). Fox had to come into the game anyway since Hill was already PH for in the prior AB. Fox is a flyball machine and Valaverde had no control last night (which makes bunting more difficult). Instead we burned bench spot by using Font leaving us with only Blanco on the bench for extra innings. I'm not getting into it again but this was the crux of the argument.

[rok]

Also, Fontenot was the the wrong guy up there to be asking to bunt. Other than that, I didn't have a huge problem with pulling the squeeze play, but just wished we had someone up there who actually has attempted more than 1 bunt in his professional career.

[The Dude]

<!--quoteo(post=52647:date=Jul 28 2009, 08:58 AM:name=Coldneck)-->QUOTE (Coldneck @ Jul 28 2009, 08:58 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=52644:date=Jul 28 2009, 09:45 AM:name=The Dude)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (The Dude @ Jul 28 2009, 09:45 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->I didn't see the game thread, but I'm not sure how anyone could say it was a bad call.... Of course, I'm in favor of using the squeeze pretty much whenever possible.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->

You should read the game thread. Many of us were pissed Font was put in to PH instead of Fox, not the Lou called for a squeeze once Font was put into the game (although that could be argued as well since all we needed was a walk, a fly ball, or a grounder to the middle infield and the game was won). Fox had to come into the game anyway since Hill was already PH for in the prior AB. Fox is a flyball machine and Valaverde had no control last night (which makes bunting more difficult). Instead we burned bench spot by using Font leaving us with only Blanco on the bench for extra innings. I'm not getting into it again but this was the crux of the argument.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

Ah- I can see that.

[Butcher]

How many successful bunts have you guys seen Fontenot pull off? It isn't so easy to get a bunt down if you aren't called on to sacrifice very often. It's even harder when you're facing a spastic potbellied flamethrower who couldn't find the strike zone and had walked three batters before you got to the plate.

Getting a successful bunt down isn't any more automatic than hitting a fly ball. Fontenot has hit hundreds of fly balls this season. How many bunts do you think he's attempted?

[1060Ivy]

Have a feeling Font is going to be in the Lou's dog house for his terrible execution.

I don't have an issue with Lou's call.

I don't understand why Lou wouldn't have had Blanco execute it unless he wanted the element of surprise. If that was the case, Fontenot may have been told that the plan before going to the plate which would make the failure to execute even worse. I was lucky enough to be at the game but I am uncertain if Blanco was available for that spot but I believe that he was.

[rok]

<!--quoteo(post=52655:date=Jul 28 2009, 09:41 AM:name=Butcher)-->QUOTE (Butcher @ Jul 28 2009, 09:41 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->How many successful bunts have you guys seen Fontenot pull off? It isn't so easy to get a bunt down if you aren't called on to sacrifice very often. It's even harder when you're facing a spastic potbellied flamethrower who couldn't find the strike zone and had walked three batters before you got to the plate.

Getting a successful bunt down isn't any more automatic than hitting a fly ball. Fontenot has hit hundreds of fly balls this season. How many bunts do you think he's attempted?<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I can't even recall a single successful bunt attempt by him ever.

[sleepyhead]

<!--quoteo(post=52657:date=Jul 28 2009, 09:43 AM:name=rok)-->QUOTE (rok @ Jul 28 2009, 09:43 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=52655:date=Jul 28 2009, 09:41 AM:name=Butcher)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Butcher @ Jul 28 2009, 09:41 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->How many successful bunts have you guys seen Fontenot pull off? It isn't so easy to get a bunt down if you aren't called on to sacrifice very often. It's even harder when you're facing a spastic potbellied flamethrower who couldn't find the strike zone and had walked three batters before you got to the plate.

Getting a successful bunt down isn't any more automatic than hitting a fly ball. Fontenot has hit hundreds of fly balls this season. How many bunts do you think he's attempted?<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I can't even recall a single successful bunt attempt by him ever.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

I said last night that if a bunt was the plan all along, it should have been Blanco PH'ing. If not, it should have been Fox to put it into the air. Either way my biggest problem was the personnel choices, not the decision to squeeze.

[Butcher]

<!--quoteo(post=52657:date=Jul 28 2009, 09:43 AM:name=rok)-->QUOTE (rok @ Jul 28 2009, 09:43 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=52655:date=Jul 28 2009, 09:41 AM:name=Butcher)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Butcher @ Jul 28 2009, 09:41 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->How many successful bunts have you guys seen Fontenot pull off? It isn't so easy to get a bunt down if you aren't called on to sacrifice very often. It's even harder when you're facing a spastic potbellied flamethrower who couldn't find the strike zone and had walked three batters before you got to the plate.

Getting a successful bunt down isn't any more automatic than hitting a fly ball. Fontenot has hit hundreds of fly balls this season. How many bunts do you think he's attempted?<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I can't even recall a single successful bunt attempt by him ever.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Precisely. And yet he's called on to lay down a successful bunt against a guy who throws 95 mph gas who was wild all night and he has faced four times? C'mon.

[Butcher]

<!--quoteo(post=52658:date=Jul 28 2009, 09:45 AM:name=sleepyhead)-->QUOTE (sleepyhead @ Jul 28 2009, 09:45 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=52657:date=Jul 28 2009, 09:43 AM:name=rok)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (rok @ Jul 28 2009, 09:43 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=52655:date=Jul 28 2009, 09:41 AM:name=Butcher)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Butcher @ Jul 28 2009, 09:41 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->How many successful bunts have you guys seen Fontenot pull off? It isn't so easy to get a bunt down if you aren't called on to sacrifice very often. It's even harder when you're facing a spastic potbellied flamethrower who couldn't find the strike zone and had walked three batters before you got to the plate.

Getting a successful bunt down isn't any more automatic than hitting a fly ball. Fontenot has hit hundreds of fly balls this season. How many bunts do you think he's attempted?<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I can't even recall a single successful bunt attempt by him ever.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

I said last night that if a bunt was the plan all along, it should have been Blanco PH'ing. If not, it should have been Fox to put it into the air. Either way my biggest problem was the personnel choices, not the decision to squeeze.
<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->
I can support that. If Lou was dead-set on executing a squeeze, then don't ask Fontenot to do it.

Any way you slice it, it was a bad decision. If we lost last night, I would still be fuming. Since Alf blasted all over Sampson's face, I don't really care anymore.

[rok]

Yeah, I can agree with all of that. And I don't really care anymore, aside from the fact that the game dragged on for hours and I feel tired as shit this morning.