- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,199,451
- Reaction score
- 59
You must be registered for see images
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 10: Matt Krook #58 of the Washington Nationals pitches against the New York Yankees during the ninth inning at Nationals Park on July 10, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Nationals addiction to platoon matchups has hurt them a few times this year, but there was no more obvious example than last night. In a 3-2 game in the top of the 9th, Blake Butera went to lefty Matt Krook over sticking with Clayton Beeter. Krook, who now has a career ERA of 16.62 gave up the lead by allowing a home run to the left handed Jazz Chisholm.
I am not really sure what book Blake Butera is going off of right now, but there needs to be some serious reflection after last night. Butera needs to start trusting his best relievers instead of turning to guys based on what hand they throw with. Moving forward, Butera cannot be pulling his best reliever for a guy with an ERA in the double digits in the 9th inning.
After the game, Butera explained his decision by saying he brought in Krook because of the three lefties/switch hitters that were up. He told me that he went with Krook over the more reliable PJ Poulin because he liked how Krook matched up with the switch hitting Jasson Dominguez. Krook ended up allowing a single to Dominguez and a homer to Jazz Chisholm who is worse against left-handed pitching.
I love so much of what Butera and the new regime have done, but they have not covered themselves in glory building or managing this bullpen. Jose A. Ferrer would be a decent lefty to throw out there in the 9th, but he was traded for Harry Ford, who is struggling in AAA. Butera himself has struggled to push the right buttons in an admittedly weak bullpen.
There have been plenty of times where you can’t really blame Butera for this bad bullpen melting down. However, last night was not one of those cases. It felt like we had the Yankees right where we wanted them after Clayton Beeter got a strikeout to end the 8th. Beeter, who has not allowed a run in his last 7 outings, would come out for the 9th, and the fans would be happy.
Butera had other plans though. He wanted to play the matchups instead of sticking with his best arm. It is not like Beeter has a problem against left handed hitters though. Lefties are hitting just .200 against Beeter this season and .198 in his career. Beeter’s downer slider is a platoon neutral weapon that works against lefties and righties.
However, Butera thought Krook was the right move, and he got burned. Moving forward, I think the Nats need to play to their own strengths instead of fixating on other teams weaknesses. Sure, some of these Yankees hitters struggle against lefties, but with all due respect, most of the lefties they are facing are better than Matt Krook.
Right now, the Nats have 4 low slot, soft-tossing lefties in the bullpen. Three of them pitched yesterday, and while Palmquist and Cosgrove did their jobs, Krook did not. Moving forward, I really want Blake Butera to manage based on his own personnel instead of being such a reactive manager.
One thing I thought was revealing was when Blake Butera said after the game that having Krook, or at least one of his lefties closing out the game was pre-planned. It is just another example of this regime’s extreme devotion to platoon matchups. Having 4 lefties in the bullpen was part of the plan for this weekend.
However, I think the Nats should pay more attention to quality over what hand a guy throws with. Honestly, after Brad Lord’s injury, Eddy Yean should have been given the call up to the big leagues. He has an upper 90’s heater and a real mound presence. The Nats went with Tom Cosgrove though. Cosgrove’s profile just feels redundant with Krook, Poulin and Carson Palmquist.
Part of what makes these low slot lefties effective is that they are a unique look. If hitters just keep seeing one low slot lefty after another, they are going to catch on at some point. It felt like that happened when the Yankees faced their third low slot lefty of the night.
This should be a major wake up call for Blake Butera and this front office. For most of these bullpen meltdowns, you can blame it on Butera not having the guys or his guys letting him down. However, last night, Butera had his guy on the mound, but pulled him after one batter for a pitcher with a career ERA over 16 because of what hand he throws the baseball with.
Continue reading...
