I feel like everyone is giving Robin too much of the benefit of the doubt already in this thread. His team responded to him and done well so far, but in no way am I ready to call him a great manager. He still makes plenty of WTF decisions. This team went through a carnival the last two years, so just have a quiet calming presence in the dugout would lead to a turnaround in performance. This team also hasn't faced major adversity yet, so he hasn't had to deal with that.

 

I'm not trying to hate on Robin, and I think he could be a good one over time. But I don't think that four months proves that everyone's original opinion was 100% wrong.

 

I'd say losing in crushing fashion to the Red Sox, getting swept by the Tigers and losing five games in the standings to them in one week.

 

That was a pretty big test.

 

Many weren't sure (myself included) how they were going to respond to that, especially with the Rangers and hated Twins looming...along with our tendency to beat ourselves against Minnesota.

 

Any road stretch of 16/19 games against the competition we faced is huge test of any manager.

 

And he's had to deal with that inexperienced bullpen for 2/3rd's of the season b4 picking up Myers and getting Crain off the DL.

 

 

 

Edited August 2, 201213 yr by caulfield12

I could probably be a pretty good major league mgr

 

like tomorrow

I feel like everyone is giving Robin too much of the benefit of the doubt already in this thread. His team responded to him and done well so far, but in no way am I ready to call him a great manager. He still makes plenty of WTF decisions. This team went through a carnival the last two years, so just have a quiet calming presence in the dugout would lead to a turnaround in performance. This team also hasn't faced major adversity yet, so he hasn't had to deal with that.

 

I'm not trying to hate on Robin, and I think he could be a good one over time. But I don't think that four months proves that everyone's original opinion was 100% wrong.

If that was automatic, there would have been zero negative posts.

If that was automatic, there would have been zero negative posts.

 

That's a good point. Bobby Valentine stepped into a madhouse in Boston and somehow made it worse.

I'd say losing in crushing fashion to the Red Sox, getting swept by the Tigers and losing five games in the standings to them in one week.

 

That was a pretty big test.

 

Many weren't sure (myself included) how they were going to respond to that, especially with the Rangers and hated Twins looming...along with our tendency to beat ourselves against Minnesota.

 

Any road stretch of 16/19 games against the competition we faced is huge test of any manager.

 

And he's had to deal with that inexperienced bullpen for 2/3rd's of the season b4 picking up Myers and getting Crain off the DL.

 

Responding after getting swept by your division rival is huge, although if he didn't start a 9th inning with Thornton, then maybe the Red Sox series ends differently. Managing a young bullpen, but a few of his decisions in that regard that didn't work out were kind of obvious from the get go.

That's a good point. Bobby Valentine stepped into a madhouse in Boston and somehow made it worse.

 

And I as a White Sox fan thank him for that.

My stance was that I was OK with it, as long as they surrounded Robin with some good, veteran coaches. Cooper was there, but I wanted a serious, major league bench coach. Didn't get one, so I thought it wasn't a good move. Apparently I was wrong about that need - other than Cooper, a very inexperienced staff has been doing quite well so far.

 

I could probably be a pretty good major league mgr

 

like tomorrow

 

"Little Big League" was fiction, ya know.

Plus, McEwing has a lot of experience being around LaRussa....that has to help, too.

 

He's our coaching version of Jose Oquendo, and similar players as well.

I don't have the time to search, but, I remember being cautious about Robin in that role, but I really bought in that this was a signal that the next 3 years would be brutal. It made sense they would hire this guy cheaply to oversee some re-building years. The offseason that followed saw no meaningful signings or trades that brought in anything to help now. It really was hard to grasp that the team could merely improve from it's deathpit of 2011.

 

Also remember, that 2011 team for a lot of us was the most unlikeable sox team I've ever watched. I wanted them to doubledown with a real baseball guy as a sign of good faith, and they ended up bringing one in, just one we didn't know had it in him.

When you get pissed, good things happen. Danks > McCarthy. Ventura > Ozzie.

I think that was the most I've ever overreacted after a Sox trade or game. I was not happy about that one.

I think that was the most I've ever overreacted after a Sox trade or game. I was not happy about that one.

 

BMAC was such a fan favorite, it was understandable. I was really happy for him this year.

BMAC was such a fan favorite, it was understandable. I was really happy for him this year.

I hated that trade myself. It didn't make sense to me. I did become a big Danks fan and hope he fully recovers. I still think he's a lot better than some think.

BMAC was such a fan favorite, it was understandable. I was really happy for him this year.

He was but it wasn't that. A bunch of my favorite players have moved on(Rowand and Buehrle) to name the biggest two and I was happy we traded them/let them go. I just thought Brandon was going to be an absolute stud for us while I wasn't too high on John. I was very wrong and very happy to be so.

Glad I reserved judgement.that way I'm never wrong.

I think the people who were really upset about Ventura where just putting way too much into it. It's not like he's trying to split an atom or perform delicate brain surgery. He's been around baseball his entire life. It pretty much was his life for many years. Running a game shouldn't be difficult.

 

He had Cooper around to help him know the pitching personnel if he hadn't already. Players were sick of either the Ozzie/KW dynamic or Ozzie himself, and if you're sick of Ozzie, Robin is the perfect replacement.

 

 

The only other major thing is getting respect in the clubhouse. He was a good player with a terrific reputation. He has an even keel personality. It wasn't hard to figure he was going to command respect in the clubhouse.

 

Someday, however, just like everyone else, the Sox will lose a lot more than they win, and he will become an idiot.

Edited August 2, 201213 yr by Dick Allen

"Little Big League" was fiction, ya know.

 

Blasphemy...if by fiction you mean an amazing movie, then I guess you're right. However, he really should have been booed out of the Twinkie Dome for letting Griffey Jr. beat him in such an important game.

The Bmac trade is another thread where I was one of the few who favored it. Danks was a stud, BMac scared me.

The Bmac trade is another thread where I was one of the few who favored it. Danks was a stud, BMac scared me.

The 2007 season immediately after that trade though...wasn't exactly a fun one.

Responding after getting swept by your division rival is huge, although if he didn't start a 9th inning with Thornton, then maybe the Red Sox series ends differently. Managing a young bullpen, but a few of his decisions in that regard that didn't work out were kind of obvious from the get go.

 

 

I think it's just that he didn't quite trust Quintana at that point to close out games...

 

Yesterday, he used Peavy when he was over 100 pitches in the 8th and Myers/Thornton would have been perhaps more logical. But he and Reed got out of that game somehow.

 

But I thought facing Mauer with Peavy had disaster written all over it. But I probably would have said the same about Septimo or more likely Thornton facing Mauer.

 

Right now, the only lefty to trust against Mauer is Liriano, and a healthy Sale.

The 2007 season immediately after that trade though...wasn't exactly a fun one.

 

 

C'mon, we had the bullpen revolving door, Josh Fields, Jerry Owens, Andy Gonzalez (the predecessor to Escobar in Sox lineage) and Ehren Wasserman.

 

At least we kept Buehrle, and I think, Dye, that year...instead of giving them up, which would have precluded 2008 from happening.

C'mon, we had the bullpen revolving door, Josh Fields, Jerry Owens, Andy Gonzalez (the predecessor to Escobar in Sox lineage) and Ehren Wasserman.

 

At least we kept Buehrle, and I think, Dye, that year...instead of giving them up, which would have precluded 2008 from happening.

Andy Gonzalez and Eduardo Escobar sre nothing alike. And Wassermann was one of the few things that actually went well in 2007.

Managers, like POTUS, get too much blame, and too much credit.

Blasphemy...if by fiction you mean an amazing movie, then I guess you're right. However, he really should have been booed out of the Twinkie Dome for letting Griffey Jr. beat him in such an important game.

 

That damn dome

Funny to see how much everyone agreed on this.