Did Torey Lovullo MISMANAGE Diamondbacks' Bullpen In Tight Win Over Giants?

I know the big question in terms of Tori for this game is it feels like we're we're always parsing through tor's Bullpen decisions that's are that's what our show consists of at this point we should make that a segment we should we probably should just make that a segment uh but yeah the the sort of controversial decision that Tory made today was bringing in AJ Puck to face one hitter which wound up being a right-handed hitter because the Giants pinch hit for um for Grant McCrae with Luis Matos and he strikes him out does do his job and then Tory decides not to bring Puck out for the next inning despite the fact that the first hitter would have been Mike yky who's a left-handed hitter and I don't think Bob Melvin would have pinched hit for him so I understand where people are coming from on that uh one thing I will say is that if you do bring Puck out then he has to face the minimum three so he wouldn't have just been able to face yky he also would have had to face Tyler Fitzgerald who's really crushed left-handed pitching uh so I imagine that played into into tor's calculus I think more than more than anything like beyond the Left Right Stuff the best argument for leaving puck in is is just that puck has been the best reliever on this team by a pretty wide margin for a while now uh and it feels like you know just looking back on this game like the fact that it was AJ Puck who faced one hitter and and Justin Martinez and Ryan Thompson faced so many it just feels like that's not the way that you'd necessarily want to draw it up I mean AJ Puck I had his numbers up here a second ago his numbers since joining the Diamond Back s fo tall Amish looking man I mean he's intimidating and terrifying more do what more do we have to say about his numbers like can you imagine facing that I mean like okay the seven feet tall that that speaks for itself but the Amish part they are so hardworking right like you have no idea the amount of work that that man's put in to get to the level where he's at so I do have pucks numbers now so including today AJ Puck since joining the Diamondbacks has pitched 15 Innings allowed eight hits one run he has two walks and 23 strikeouts in 15 Innings of War he has been this best team the team's best relever by pitch 15 Innings right and it feels like the fact that AJ Puck is a lefty sort of works against him in Tory system right he's he's being saved for specific moments he's being used like like in today's case to get one key hitter out to get out of a tough spot and then you're passing the Baton to somebody else for the next inning yeah I I understand where people are coming from hindsight is 2020 like if Ryan Thompson pitches a one two 38 like we're not having this conversation but I see where people are coming from for sure first I want to address Tony's comment right there he said despite our frustrations I don't think uh I don't think we'll ever get into tor's head with his decisions it'll be a crazy ride to the end of this season I think that's something that like at times we try to explain simply because it's not it's not to say we even understand tor's decisions but we're present when he gives the explanation and the thought process behind it and Tori does at times especially in like the pregame pressers that we don't even post this stuff or even talk about it that often but that's where he goes kind of into detail sometimes about why he does the things he does with guys and why he manages the way he manages and like you kind of hear it over and over and a lot of it really is like Tori feels like part of his job is is building these guys up and building their belief in themselves and and at times yes managing games like that's all we as fans care about right is the results we just care about the wins and losses and at times Tori has so much more that he's trying to manage he's trying to manage six seven eight games ahead sometimes in a way that we don't really think and and have to worry about scheduling out in the same way that a major league manager schedules I'm not trying to make excuses for him but I think that this comment is very right is that even when we sit up here and criticize his decisions especially with the bullpen like yeah I mean things don't go right you're sometimes and and then when they don't go right you as the manager are now to blame for it Like Jesse said if he goes out there and shoves this is not disgusted I will say that leaving Ryan Thompson out there for as long as he did seems silly especially considering that Ryan Thompson didn't look like he had his best stuff tonight yeah and there's just a point where you know you're gonna end up just getting yourself into the mess that you're getting yourself into and then going to the person that you don't really want to turn to anyway right like they end up going to Justin Martinez for a four out save which I didn't like and they didn't have the best results but the the end result is that the Diamondbacks won the game and the end result there was that Justin Martinez was able to not let things completely spiral out of control despite not being perfect tonight and lets this team walk away with a win a Sean said it earlier Jesse said it a win is a win and that is tonight's win like you're not happy about it you're not leaving here like patting yourselves on the back like you would have had this been a seven to1 Victory or an 8 to1 viory it would have been much different but you're still leaving here thinking well they got the job done so so let's play through that that eighth inning let's do it so like what if you were going to hypothetically take Ryan Thompson out sooner I'm just curious when people think that should have happened and I imagine that you're thinking of going to maybe Kevin gingle in that spot because you probably don't want to bring in Justin Martinez any earlier than maybe he was already brought in although I guess I guess there were two outs for a while in that in so still would have been it still would have been a four out save for him but I think maybe after the single yeah so it was a stry homer Tyler fritzgerald strikes out uh Helio Ramos uh singles Matt Chapman strikes out so at that point you've got one runner on base and two outs Thompson is already allowed a run yes but he's one out away from getting out of the inning that would seem a little bit early and it's a seven to3 ball game at that point right right and then Lamont Way Jr walks on four pitches MH so I mean maybe there was an element of wanting to be careful there but obviously Thompson's command was not great uh and then Thompson allows they Auto they intentionally walked um they intentionally walked him in the ninth I believe this was in the eighth they Ryan Thompson was just struggling to throw strikes so at that point we've got first and second two out Thompson has just walked a guy on four pitches I I could maybe see wanting to take him out there he winds up facing draw and carosone who sing Les uh that scores a run and then Hy Barosa makes a throwing air Ryan Thompson wasn't backing the play up in the right spot suddenly those Runners are at second and third instead of just first and second maybe that's where you want to pull him Tory was one guy after that he allowed Patrick Bailey to drop down a bunt that Ryan Thompson did not successfully field uh and that's when Tori eventually made the decision so um I I mean are you bringing in Kevin gingle to face Patrick Bailey like that's a little weird because Patrick Bailey is a left-handed hitter uh I guess maybe you're bringing in GLE to face in carosone I I think I could I could maybe see that as well I I probably wouldn't have removed Puck from the game so it's hard for me to say like where I would have done it but yeah I mean I probably would have gone to somebody else at that point you know what I mean like I I don't you hate to use like Puck Thompson GLE and Martinez in a game that your starter pitch six and two3 innings that's gross maybe the result would be a little bit cleaner although I will also say Kevin GLE did not throw well at all in his last outing I believe he faced three batters and all of them reached so I still think GLE should be in that role that Ryan Thompson is in I think that that setup role sure is better fit for Kevin gingle I think the only problem is as and you brought this up earlier before we started the show is that Kevin gingle is so good with inherited Runners so like typically that setup role is just starting the eighth inning clean and and I mean it almost seems like a misuse of something somebody who's very talented at coming into games you know with with Runners on yeah yeah I mean I think the the larger reality here is like yes I I understand people may be having gripes with some of the decisions that Tory made tonight but it's hard to manage a bullpen when when there's AJ Puck and everyone else right like there just aren't really I get GLE despite his last outing has pitched better lately so maybe you'd put him in a separate category but Ryan Thompson has not pitched very well lately Justin Martinez continues to be in the closer role and he did get the job done tonight um he hasn't blown a save since since he took over that role which is impressive uh but he has looked a little shaky recently right yeah uh so this just isn't like last season around this time have the meeting with him before the inning Jesse I told you that they waited until the last batter to have the meeting with him and then he goes out there and freaking absolutely blows the guy away what are we doing here let's get out there let's have that meeting first thing before any batter even comes up and let's get Justin Martinez's head [Music] right we all like the man