Case and point, leading game five 2-0 going into the top of the ninth, there's no way Giants manager Bruce Bochy would allow an emotional starting pitcher to bully his way into returning to the mound to close out the game. And even if Bochy did let him pitch, he would of been on a short leash and pulled after giving up a lead-off walk, no hesitation. Mets manager Terry Collins did neither as the wheels began coming off the New York world series cart at an alarming rate and at the worst of times.
When the dust cleared the Kansas City Royals had scored five runs in the top of the twelth inning. New York would go down in the bottom half of the inning on three of four hitters striking out; two swinging and the final looking. Promising Mets rookie left fielder Michael Conforto did get one of his two hits of the night in that final gut wrenching, series ending inning.
Its easy to say what Collins as manager should've done after the fact, but his decision to keep starting pitcher Matt Harvey, with 100 pitches already thrown, in a win or go home game will be second guessed for years to come. And as manager he's paid to live with those type of decisions.
I feel the difference in a manager like Bruce Bochy, with his post season experience, is in not letting the emotions of the moment overtake his baseball manager's judgment. Players can afford loose emotions in big games, managers gotta stay even keel and stay at the helm to guide the ship safely to shore. One misjudgment or loss of command moment and all could be lost.
The Matt Harvey moment was just one of the many moments that led to the Mets losing the World Series. The team as a whole, pitching, hitting and fielding just looked as if they ran out of gas. Maybe that's also true for manager Terry Collins; through all the adjustments needing to be made on this big stage that is championship major league baseball, he simply ran out of gas. It was one helluva ride though, for New York and all of baseball.
Final Score (Royals win series 4 games to 1)
Royals 7
Mets 2
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