Where does the blame lie in this collapse by the Texas Rangers?

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There was hope and excitement from the fans early on in Monday's game, but that quickly turned to dejection and depression as the game mercifully came to an end. Houston took game one of this very important series 13-6. The outcome of this game was determined by the bullpens of these two teams. Texas came out on the short end. It was a game much like one we have seen plenty of times this season. Texas took an early, lead, the starter lost the lead, and the bullpen put the game out of reach.

It may be too soon to ask this question but where should the blame lie for this collapse? The easy answer is with the members of the bullpen. The next answer should probably be Chris Young who assembled this embarrassment of a bullpen. I think the next person in line is Bruce Bochy. I do think it is fair to call into question his management of the bullpen, the delay in warming up relievers, and his deployment of the bullpen.

Next: Has Bochy's strength suddenly become a weakness?

Bochy's Bullpen Management

One of the strengths of Bochy's managerial career has been his ability to masterfully handle a bullpen. He knew when to pull his starters and how to deploy his bullpen to maximize their strengths. His managing of the pitching staff in San Francisco led to his winning three World Series titles.

The problem he has had this year is that Chris Young saddled him with a 94-loss bullpen and told him to turn it into a 90+win bullpen. There is only so much he can do. I have a hard time believing he does not have a say in who is in the bullpen. Chris Young is the GM and ultimate decision maker, but I am sure he is consulting with Bochy on who to call up and who to send down. I am sure he consulted with Bochy at the deadline when trade discussions were happening. If there are players in the bullpen then they are there because Bochy thinks they should be there.

Bochy also does not manage the bullpen with the urgency that I think the situation demands. Too often they will decide before the game that they are saving a pitcher for the next day. They have a sketched-out game plan pre-game and do not want to deviate from that even if it means losing the game that day.

Monday was an example of that. Dane Dunning was "available" in the pen, but Bochy had no plans on actually using him. Nathan Eovaldi is being activated on Tuesday and will start in game two of the series. He has not pitched since July 18th and his pitch count will be limited. So the plan obviously is to pair him with Dane Dunning and try to get five to six innings from the two pitchers. Dunning could have been used today. Heaney only was able to go 4 2/3 innings. Dunning could have been called instead of Otto and likely would have kept the game to a 3-1 or 3-3 score long enough to hand off to the bullpen in the late innings. Otto did get out of the fifth but then gave up back-to-back home runs in the sixth to give the Astros their first lead of the day.

The season is now in September and the Rangers are in a dire situation. Lose tomorrow and good chance they will be on the outside looking in on the playoff field. The goal should be to do whatever it takes to win today and then deal with tomorrow when it comes. It is fine to hold pitchers back in June or July when there is still plenty of season left. This is the biggest series of the season and he is managing it like it is an early summer game.

Next: Is Bochy slow to get pitchers up in the bullpen?

Bochy's delay in having relievers warmed up and ready to go

Monday's game saw multiple examples of the game getting out of hand and Bochy not having relievers ready to go. The first example was in the sixth. Otto had gotten out of the fifth and the Rangers went back ahead 5-4 on a Corey Seager home run. Bochy could have decided to take Otto out at that point. He was not bound by the three-batter rule. If a pitcher ends an inning he can be taken out and not have to face three batters. Bochy could have chosen to go to Perez or Dunning at that point for two innings. Instead, he chose to go back to Otto.

The issue was that the sixth inning started and no one was warming up. Otto gave up the back-to-back home runs on lazy sliders and then pitchers started to scramble and get ready. How do you not have someone ready to go after the first home run? Altuve was coming up next and he smelled blood. He enters the batter box in attack mode and he jumps all over the second pitch and takes Otto deep. It was at that point that Perez started throwing. It was too late by then, the lead was gone.

That was not the only time though. Josh Sborz then came in for the seventh after the Rangers had tied the game. The same Sborz who had allowed eight runs combined over his last five appearances. Sborz got into trouble quickly allowing the first three batters to reach. At that point it was quite clear that Sborz had nothing to offer. A seven pitch at-bat to Kyle Tucker where he hit a single should have been enough to take him out. Sborz could not put Tucker away. No one was warming or ready to go. Again Bochy had put in a struggling reliever with no way to really bail him out.

It was not until after Sborz had walked Jose Abreu to force in a run that Perez once again started throwing. It was not until the Astros had put up six runs on the board that Bochy decided to remove him. Yeah Sborz shoulders the blame for not being good enough, but Bochy not having a plan B ready to go after three batters is inexcusable. I know he has complained some about the three-batter rule, but it is on him if he does not have someone ready to go after three batters are faced.

Bochy could be doing better. These are just two examples from Monday's game. The not having relievers ready to go has been a season-long issue. Today it was Sborz, but it has been other pitchers this season that have been left in too long because relievers were not ready to go.

Next: Texas has tried going by the book, but is it time to throw out the book?

Bochy's deployment of the bullpen

The conventional strategy that Bochy has been using for this bullpen has clearly not worked. The conventional method says that the starter goes five to six innings. Then they hand it off to a middle reliever to cover the sixth and seventh innings, and then it is handed off to the late-inning relievers for the eighth and ninth innings. Bochy has spent this entire season searching for players for those roles. The problem is that he does not have players to fit into those roles.

This bullpen cannot be deployed in a conventional manner. It has to be unconventional if it is going to work. That means playing matchups more often. Not limiting guys to certain roles. Monday's game he could have used Perez for the seventh and eighth innings. Instead, he called upon Sborz, because Sborz has been his seventh and eighth-inning reliever for most of this season. It is why on Sunday he called upon Jose Leclerc in the eighth instead of using Cody Bradford. Bochy has guys pegged for certain roles and does not want to venture out of using those players in those roles.

It feels like he is trying to fit square pegs into a round hole instead of just trying to win baseball games. No matter how hard he tries Sborz is not going to be that reliable reliever. He washed out of the Dodgers system and probably needs to be let go from the Rangers organization at this point. Jose Leclerc is good but not consistent enough to be relied upon in a high-leverage role. Bochy and Mike Maddux are managing this bullpen as if it is a good bullpen and it is not. The goal should be to just get batters out. There should be no roles. If it is better to pitch Chapman in the sixth then so be it. Whatever it takes to get the 27th out and win the game should be the mantra.

Bochy is managing this as if this is year one of a three-year plan and that building up confidence in certain pitchers will pay dividends down the line. The problem with that thinking is that there is a good chance Chris Young will clean house in the bullpen completely this offseason. These guys who we are building confidence will not be here in 2024. Win games and let the rest figure itself out. That is all that matters right now.

Bochy should not be afraid to take chances. He is on the coldest of seats and will be for the duration of his tenure. He has nothing to lose at this point. Texas could absolutely miss the playoffs and he would still be the manager here for 2024. Bochy might as well go down swinging and try different combinations every night.

Lets get crazy. Instead of trying to find roles for players, find players who can get outs no matter the situation. 25 games left in the season and at this point, every game should be treated as if it is a playoff game because for Texas it is. If this slide continues they will get to the final week and find themselves nearly eliminated. Now is the time to start winning not the last 10 days of the season. Bochy is not the problem for this team, but he does deserve some of the blame for these issues.