You guys want to win games. Rocco wants to win a championship.
He knows what his guys can do. My thinking on the decisions was this:
- The AL central is pretty much already sewn up for the Twins. This means:
- They only have to win enough games to have a better record than the Guardians.
- He knows how lethal their lineup can be and he doesn't want them getting more at bats against his best guys, because:
- This is a team that is likely to be seen deep in the playoffs.
However, he did need to beat the Guardians. That's why he played every game with them like it was in October.
That's my thought. He just might be a subtle genius.