This is not a typical analytical piece like you normally see in this space. No, this is an “open letter” to you, the average Angels fan. I have one very simple, very direct question for you: what exactly is it you want Mike Scioscia to do about this struggling ballclub?
With the losses piling up and the runs, well, not, there is a growing movement from a segment of Angels fans that Mike Scioscia needs to be fired. It is a movement that I cannot get behind. In my view, Scioscia has been too good a manager for this team for too long to dump him like so much flotsam and jetsam because of one bad quarter of a season. At the same time, I am having a harder and harder time defending Scioscia. His lineups have been scattershot. He’s shown too much faith in Vernon Wells. His bullpen usage can be headscratching. His reliance on smallball has proven counterproductive. These are all problems, but they are also flaws he has had most of his tenure, only now they seem more visible because the Angels aren’t winning in spite of the flaws like they used to.
But, again, that’s just my opinion, an opinion that I get the feeling is fading into the minority. So you tell me.
If you want Scioscia fired, then that must mean you think there is something different he can be doing to get better results from this roster. So what should he be doing differently?
What can he do to make Albert Pujols start hitting?
What can he do to get the team to not choke with runners in scoring position?
What can he do to make the bullpen better?
I realize I am stacking the deck a bit with those questions, but I legitimately want to know what solutions people have to offer, because I am coming up empty. I also realize that people are angry, because I’m angry too. We all want to fix this mess as soon as possible and don’t care what it takes.
And if your solution is that there is nothing Scioscia can do, then why should he be fired? What is it a new manager will bring to the table that Scioscia can’t?
To be honest, I don’t think anybody can offer me an answer that will make me change my mind, but with this season circling the drain, I’m willing to entertain just about anything.