To Rest or Not to Rest? That’s Lobo Baseball’s Question

by Zach

(Ed. Note: This article was meant to go up before the series started, so we already have a bit of an idea of what the team is planning on doing. Thanks to their 23-2 blowout win against Air Force today, the decision might be a little different, now that they only need two more wins to clinch a share of the regular season title. Hopefully they can keep it rolling tomorrow.)

The Lobos (33-20, 18-9) have a very interesting decision to make in their series against the Air Force Academy (27-23, 11-16) this weekend: should they play for the chance to be co-champions for the regular season, or should they rest some of their players to get ready for the Mountain West Tournament? There are pros and cons to both options, and I am sure that this is something the coaches are thinking about. The Mountain West will be a one-bid league again this season, meaning that the only way to make the NCAA Tournament field, which is absolutely the main goal for the Lobos, is to win the conference tournament. This wouldn’t have been a question if the Lobos hadn’t slipped the last few weeks, having lost their last three weekend series and winning only two of the nine games, as they were in decent shape for an at-large bid before that. But, seeing how things look right now, it might be worth losing a couple of battles to win the war.

Pros for Not Resting:

  • If you sweep AFA in this series to get the #1 seed, you would have momentum going into tournament, and it would get the last few weeks out of your head.
  • Your starting pitching needs to get back on track to have a chance to win the conference tournament, and a good week of starts from you weekend rotation could be a good sign for the Lobos.
  • If you sweep the series, it probably means that you had a good weekend at the plate against a couple of the best starters in the Mountain West. The Lobo bats have struggled a little as of late and they need to find their footing to help get them into the NCAA Tournament.
  • Baseball can be a sport where rest can be a bad thing, because the hitters can lose their timing at the plate, and pitchers can lose the feel of their off speed pitches. By not resting players, you don’t risk your players getting off track.

Cons for Not Resting:

  • There’s no guarantee that you will even win the series, let alone sweep the series to be co-champions.
  • There are players that probably need to regroup and take a day or two off during the series. If you don’t rest them, they could be too worn down for the tournament.
  • You will need at least four starting pitchers to win the tournament, meaning that one or both of your midweek starters will have to start a game during the tournament. James Harrington and Luis Gonzalez haven’t started a game in a week and a half, and not giving them a start in this series would mean they haven’t started a game in over two weeks.
  • Injuries do happen and players that are worn down are more likely to get hurt. That could mean anything from a pulled hamstring to a torn ligament.

Pros for Resting:

  • You have to put yourself in the best position to win the tournament, and being at full strength gives you that best chance.
  • Getting players rest before the Tournament next week can bring more energy and a fresh team to the tournament. This team needs new life, as they’ve looked a little worn-out towards the end of this long season, and resting players could be a huge key for this to happen.
  • Giving role players a bigger role in a series could play huge dividends for the tournament. The best way for your role players to be ready to contribute in the tournament is to give them meaningful at bats, and this could be a great opportunity to see what they guys on the bench can do.
  • Resting doesn’t mean that you are actively trying to lose. After all, if you only rest a few key players each game, you will still have most of your starters playing each game. You still have a chance to win the series if you rest your players, even if the chance has gone down a little bit.
  • If you sweep the series while resting players, ending up as co-champions in the process, it could give a huge confidence boost to everyone on the team.

Cons for Resting:

  • For a team that has struggled as of late, would a bad weekend while resting players destroy the team’s confidence going into the tournament?
  • Does your team support your decision if you rest your best players? If the team isn’t on board for resting players, it would be hard to regain their trust.
  • Flags fly forever! Would you risk the chance for a conference championship to have a slightly better chance of the Mountain West Tournament Championship?

Conclusion:

I personally would rest players this weekend, but it would mainly be for the pitching staff. I would give both Luis Gonzalez and James Harrington starts and would have Colton Thomson, Carson Schneider and Tyler Stevens throw two or three innings in one of the games. Most position players should be able to finish out the season strong, but if there is a hint of an injury you need to rest that player. I want to sweep this series as much as the next person, but we can’t forget the big picture: we need to win the conference tournament to have a shot to get to Omaha.