2041.02 - The Long Beach Independent - Manager Medina Sacked

[Lane]

BULLPEN USAGE CITED AS CAUSE

May 23, 2041
Long Beach, CA

In the wake of a 13 inning loss to California, the Long Beach Surfers have fired manager Pedro Medina. The midseason managerial change is becoming a habit for GM Stephen Lane, as Medina was a midseason hire just last year, at around this time of the season. Managing the team to a 62-43 record and a playoff berth last year was not enough to overcome a 23-23 start to this year and reports of severe bullpen mismanagement.

The Long Beach front office has long been vocal about their penchant for heavy bullpen usage, relying mostly on pitchers with severe platoon splits. It has often worked, and even earned the team the nickname "smoke and mirrors" for their ability to outperform expectations.

This season, the bullpen has struggled to the tune of a 6.11 ERA, which is last in the Frick League. This is in stark contrast to the starters ERA of 4.34, which is second in the league. For a team with a middle-of-the-pack-at-best offense, the entire pitching staff must perform at their peak to get the Surfers back to the playoffs.

While certain members of the 'pen appear to be falling off a bit, overall the unit has good potential if used correctly. With Medina, it is apparent that the front office was unsatisfied. This position does have merit, if you look at a few individual performances. Take sophomore Francisco Lucero for example. As a rookie last year, he pitched 46 innings and had a 3.50 ERA. This season, he's pitched 25 innings and has a 6.04 ERA. With ratings of 6/7/6 vs LHB and 9/10/7 vs RHB, it's obvious how he should be used.

However, when you look at how he's been used, you see the problem. To date, he's faced 65 righties and 47 lefties. Surely we could understand some incidental PA's vs LHB, but over 40% is too much. The same pattern can be seen across the relief corps. Not only does this directly hinder performance, but when pitchers aren't put in position to succeed, their morale tends to suffer.

The new Surfers manager will be a rookie named Felix Ortega. The 51 year old has no previous professional coaching experience and has been away from the BBA since his 2020 retirement. Following his playing career, he earned a BS in Kinesiology and a MA in Sports Management at UT San Antonio, near his hometown of Kingsville, TX. He's held multiple high school and university coaching positions, and has earned a reputation as a highly thoughtful tactical manager. He arrived in Long Beach yesterday ahead of the series against Twin Cities that begins tonight. It is unknown at this time whether he will be made available to the press before the game.

The mood in the clubhouse was upbeat at yesterday's optional workout, with multiple relievers excited about the change.