I've been frustrated with Willie at points during the season, too, but I'd like to defend him some. ]1) david wright should not be hitting 6th, 7th, or 8th. Wright didn't bat eighth once all year, and steadily moved up the lineup all season. ]2) ishii should not be starting I can't argue much here. Ishii was left in the rotation way too long. ]3) cairo should not be starting The other option was a guy who you say sucks too, and for a long time while that other option was on the DL, there were no other options. Of course, now Matsui is hitting the crap out of the ball, so he got around to the right decision there too. I can't defend Willie much here, I was arguing for Matsui's return to second for a while after he came off the DL. But at the same time I can see him feeling like both options sucked, so he was hoping Cairo would return to what he saw last year. ]4) how to make a double switch (ie dont pull a good hitter who will probably bat again, he's done this to both wright and floyd and sure enough their spot came up in a big spot and we got a pinch hitter) In fairness, Howe had this problem too, as do all managers. Even the celebrated genius LaRussa makes calls that I sometimes scratch my head about. I think all managers can have trouble with this, especially if they are first starting out and/or come from the AL. Willie has both counts working against him.