Comparing Padre Managers

Geoff Young over at Ducksnorts.com recently posted a comparison of Bud Black vs. Bruce Bochy. His post uses a lot of statistics from the Bill James Handbook 2008 (haven't received my copy just yet). Some of the main differences outlined were (FF reaction inlined):

• Bochy used more than 3 times the number of pinch runners in 2006 than Black did in 2007. I'd attribute this to two things. First, Bochy chronically over-manages. Second, the '06 team (as well as many before it) had a number of veterans nearing the end of their careers that Bochy was infatuated with, seemingly for their experience and their ability to provide an excuse that would indulge his propensity to over-manage (i.e., Mike Piazza, Ryan Klesko, Vinny Castilla). Advantage: Black.
  
• Black pulls his starters faster and uses more relievers on consecutive days. Black seems happy to take a strong outing and rely on the bullpen - at least his favorites. Keeping the only part of the team that is truly strong intact was probably a wise move, but FF wouldn't be surprised to see Heath Bell's arm fall off on his 20th consecutive day of use in the 2008 campaign. We'd like to see him balance out the 'pen a bit more, but prefer Black's approach to Bochy's "use 'em cause we got 'em" approach that seemed to frequently pair a shaky reliever with a tenuous situation. Advantage: Black
  
• Black uses many more pitch outs than Bochy. In all fairness, he was probably just trying to slow down the racetrack that was the base paths. If Bochy was good for something, it was that he seemed to get the most out of catchers - not a huge surprise given his background. Disadvantage: Padres front office for disregarding the defensive skills of catchers in their selection of backstops.

Overall, FF enjoyed the first several seasons of Bochy's reign, but grew tired of his tinkering and increasing reliance on veterans over the years (did you not cringe to see Mark Bellhorn repeatedly trotted out when younger guys watched him strikeout from the pine?). Bud Black did a nice job overall. One of the bright spots for 2007 was Kevin Kouzmanoff - he'd probably be playing for Pittsburgh with Xavier Nady right now if Bochy was still in San Diego.