sheethead

Like Ennder, I too was a fan of Yost going into 2007. I liked his motivational technique, his passion for the game, etc. My problem with him now is I think he is stubborn, close-minded, brash, and not smart enough for his job. Can he change my mind in 2008? Yes. He can do so by showing me he learned from last year, not blaming the fans for the heat he is feeling if things start to go south, not calling out players on the field in the middle of the game, etc. Also, I like to think of myself as a ballparkophile in the summer and as a theaterophile in the winter. If you like Ned and the job he has been doing with the Brewers, there's no shame in thinking of yourself as a nedophile. Embrace the things you have an affinity for, unless of course its pais (Greek) - don't embrace that then please.

It's gonna be a long enough season of Yost hunting without picking up on stuff like this... I'm hoping its not a long season, but I still remain uninspired - throwaway comment or not.

Yost 1/15/08: "I'm still playing with the lineup a little bit, in my mind," he said. "We have some capabilities of putting some offense on the board in a quick hurry." Redundancy aside, Ned's comment made me recall this thread. Does the thought of Ned's mind playing with the lineup make anyone else nervous? Granted there is a long way to go before the season kicks, but I'm still left wishing I had more faith in the team leader. None of Ned's comments inspire me, ever. And more often than not they make me cringe. Man I hope he proves me wrong and/or gets lucky this year, as my expectations are pretty high for 2008.

I am pretty sure Levya was fired because he didn't join in with Ned and Dale for the "f-bomb" launching at LaRussa. Ned 'n Dale gonna run this here team the way they wants too, and there aint nobody stopping them now. I can't befreakinglieve Ned 'n Dale are the Brewers dugout commanders for next year. I am still in disbelief. To think these two ********** could actually take a team to the playoffs is beyond comprehension. Now that I posted that, I will be watching my back for Dale and his long shadow.

The Reds are really the only comparable team, and they play in a hitters' park (I didn't adjust for parks.) Miller Park is neutral. Look at the stats. No manager is going to be able to make moves to mask that sort of junk. If you think someone could actually get Turnbow, Wise, et al to pitch better, then that's something else. That's nice but are those stats taking unearned runs into account? I would bet no. Whether Ned is the right manager for the job or not doesn't matter - at the very least everyone does need to be on the same wavelength. If you have one coach undermining you, you could lose the whole team. Maybe Nick was trying to backdoor Ned with the players to set himself up as a potential replacement? Is this because Ned can't stand to be around anyone but a "Yes" man? See: Milwaukee media and beat reporters. Maybe some contrast would do Ned some good. Maybe, and I'm saying maybe, Levya thinks like a lot of us and believes he could manage better than Yost. I would bet yes, he could.

Its not like the bullpen was the worst in the league. It wasn't that horrible of a situation, it was just used poorly and that amplified the shortcomings. The defense cost this team way more games than the bullpen did. Ned could have the best bullpen in the league (at which he did at one point), but he would still find a way to fudge it up. He would continue to use his 8th inning guy late in blowout games, or come back with his closer only when its a close situation. I am very much looking forward to next year, but having Yost in the dugout will take a little bit away from my anticipation. Knowing he will still be calling the same shots, after not learning anything from the prior year and not reflecting on any of the numerous idiot decisions he made takes the luster out of 2008 for me.

I find it hard to swallow when thinking about Yost being back in 2008. The longer Melvin waits, the uglier the end is going to be.

Negativity like this makes me sad.

Thanks!!

Why hasn't he been fired yet? Why? Why? Why?

When do we get our refund? Just wondering when they are going to stop collecting interest on our money and finally give it back.

Jay, most fans do blame the players as well. It was their performance that ultimately cost the division. This does not let the manager off the hook for the numerous occasions that he failed in his duty to the team. Players will be shuffled, and the manager should also be shuffled. He simply can't handle his job. Plain. And. Simple.

With that being said, there is 100% chance Ned is cominng back. I can promise you that. That's bold. If you are not an extreme insider, I don't see how anyone can be that sure. Taking a step back an evaluating the situation and how the season played out down the stretch I don't see how they can bring him back. He has proved that he can't handle pressure situations, will be constantly outmanaged, and has a fragile psyche. He will never be able to lead this team to where we - including Mark A. - all want it to go.

Our section to start chanting "Wave Your Towel" as instructed by the marquee in the bottom of the 9th. Shameful, embarrassing, and pathetic is what it felt like, but we laughed. We turned it around and made it funny. The whole Brewer marketing team needs to be evaluated, and heads need to roll. For this and the annual "celebrate the '82 World Series losers" campaign. Make it stop!! Is this region really lacking marketing talent that badly?

I will not miss Jenkins and his "post-enhancement" days. His skills are eroding quick, and his production against mostly righty pitching this year was poor. It was good to have him here as a constant when the team was so bad, but maybe the fact that he was one of the better offensive players on those teams explains why they were indeed so bad. Prince will break his HR record in 3-4 years, and all but the slight resemblence to B. Favre will be a distant memory. I am just curious as to how much $$ another team will give the guy. P.S. I never liked the leg kick.

I think you just got political. I tried that a bit once, it doesn't work very well.

That's from AJAY's linked NY Times article, and this, my friends, is all you need to know about Yost. Even if he can literally see his hunches/suppositions play out in an ineffective/failed way, he still believes he was correct to play them, as opposed to baseball. This man has not learned and will not learn. If he were able to learn, he would have done so by now. Time to get a real leader - instead of a back-patter - in the clubhouse for 2008. I couldn't have said it better or more clearer than this.

Another former big leaguer managing the game, and poorly I would add. I will always remember Cooper "The Manager" as the guy why tried to call out Francisco Cordero for cheating. The whole time he seemed to have his head down and ashamed as to what he was doing, but did it anyway. I'm glad he landed with the Stros, should make them easier to beat next year, and possibly the next.

Since I get to attend all three games this weekend, nothing would be better than to see the Reds sweep the Cubs, and the Brewers win at least 2 of the next 3. That would be ideal. Likely? No. Possible? Definitely. Go Brewers Go!

Can I get a MUST WIN?!?!

I wonder what Ned will have in store for us tonight on this his third to last game as a big league manager. I also wonder which third base he will be coaching next year. Ah the farewell to Ned tour begins...

All this complaining about pitching choices as the cause of the loss last night is overlooking one major thing. They only scored 3 runs. One of those was in a garbage time situation in the bottom of the 9th. So that means Pujols, who was intentionally hit with no body on base, scored the winning run. Case closed.

As far as my opinions on the defensive positioning, I don't think it's either been stellar or horrible. I don't recall a time thinking, wow, they had him shaded perfectly, nor was there a time where I thought they had a badly engineered shift on. I was at the game when a double error caused the runner on first and the batter to score due to an infield shift. A double play gets them out of the inning, but the shift caused Braun to throw errant at second because Hardy couldn't get to the bag due to the shift. This was the only time I can recall this year the shift was poorly implemented in a double play situation. Edit: Nay

I'm still confused by all the claims that the players like Ned so he's obviously a good manager. You don't have to like your manager to respect him. I've had 2 "bosses" in the last 9 years. The first, I liked quite a bit personally and had similar experiences. I don't personally get along with the second nor do we have similar senses of humor, etc. The first never helped me get my job done or put me in a position to succeed. The second helps me and puts me in a position to succeed more in a few months than 8 years from the first boss. My job satisfaction is much better under the new boss, I'm having better success, but I don't like my new boss personally nor do I really enjoy working with him. For me, the second boss is better because I'm better at my job. I don't have to like my boss to appreciate what he brings to the table and I don't understand why I have to like my boss to perform better. Personal experience for me is that I perform better with the boss who helps me succeed and not the one I like better. It's great if you have both, but it doesn't mean that if I like my boss he's better than a boss I don't like. Well put, good analogy. I read this and was thoroughly confused, my slow moving hamster wheel ground to a halt -- The first thing that came to my head was "Aquino fields his position better", and then I blurted out "Math is on my side". If you are being mean to me, I am going to get McClung loose -- I am going to have insist you stand perfectly still, and be somewhat patient, but I am pretty sure he will hit you eventually. That will learn you. Hilarious. http://static.yuku.com//domainskins/bypass/img/smileys/roll.gif At the end of the day, just vote NAY!!

I am not so sure there is anyone in category 1? This is the "Ned Yost Yay or Nay thread" not "Players Yay or Nay". In order to not be assumed to be in category 1, is one expected to include "of course, the players failed to get the job done" every time one criticizes a Yost move in a thread about Yost? My point was that most Ned Yost "Yay" people come back with the "you guys just want to blame the manager for everything." While this is truly a black/white mentality, it certainly isn't the case with most "Nay" people as opposed to "Yay". The fact of the matter is, players will be shuffled this off-season, and the manager should be too.