And I've been saying this for months. Servais and the coaches are not ready for prime time.
And I'm not talking about 'managerial decisions' ("why did he run him there?"; "he should have brought the reliever in two batters earlier", etc.) Hindsight is always 20/20.
But this is, unquestionably, the worst baserunning team I've seen--and I've been following teams closely for half a century. Not that people are too slow. But you don't get picked off due to negligence. You don't run from second to third when the ground ball is hit in front of you. This is Pony League stuff. But it's happened over and over again.
And I continue to look for ONE pitcher who has improved under Stottlemyre. Paxton only got fixed by someone else in Tacoma. Diaz was delivered as lights out option--and has clearly regressed. Miranda has faltered. Who is helping Felix reinvent himself into the new pitcher he needs to be? Is Zipper the lights-out guy you thought he would be? On the other hand, maybe Vincent. Maybe.
And subjectively, it never seemed like the team had the spark. Yes, the guys seemed to genuinely get along and support each other. But that's different from finding a motivational trait--and it doesn't have to be Piniella's trait--that will move them forward.
In the end, it's not Servais' fault. Remember, he never managed before. He was picked for the same reason that McKay was assigned to run the minors: because they believe in some sort of kumbaya nonsense that's supposed to lift all boats higher. How's that working out?
Now, I will repeat something I suggested at the outset of this administration: Lloyd McClendon would have gotten a LOT more out of this group than what they generated.
(Having said that, I will now assume the fetal position and prepare to be flamed.)
Even with the pitching injuries, we shoulda done better.