Did anyone happen to catch Willie Randolph’s interview last night on SNY’s Geico Post Game??
The reporters who were asking the questions really got his temperature boiling especially on one particular question that was asked…
Is your team approaching this as a big series, because it seems like the Braves are, and you’re not?
What followed next was a clearly infuriated Randolph trying to diffuse a question that clearly struck at the heart of his managing style.
“Of course, this is a huge series." he replied, "Why wouldn’t we approach it that way. We know the Braves are a good ballclub. I hate to say it, but I think that’s a ridiculous question"
"Every game we play is big, they hit the ball well tonight, the kid pitched a good ball game, but that doesn’t mean we didn’t approach it right or in the manner that we should have. We play hard every day. Our team plays hard every day no matter who it is."
I have no doubt that the team plays hard, but the writers question was not out of line. The fact that Willie doesn’t preface the fact that it’s a huge series to his team, tells me that Willie makes far too many assumptions about his team’s mindset.
Would he approach game seven of the NLCS in the bottom of the ninth inning with the Mets down by a run the same way as an April game against the Marlins?
That’s in essence what Willie is saying.
Hey Willie, we expect you to put out 100% for every game, but there are still games that demand 110%. Last night was one of those games. Spare me the "every game is a big game" rant. I’ve been hearing it all year, but I haven’t been seeing it.
What do you think about that??
