@Sesshy:
Ugh. Injuries just destroyed the Braves. Even getting a couple of people back, they were just completely out of sync heading into the playoffs. It sort of makes me feel better, knowing that they had a reason to lose in the postseason this year instead of just choking.
http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/10/08/dont-blame-fredi-gonzalez-for-last-nights-loss-blame-the-braves-culture/
I felt this article was super insightful, because the Giants are very similar to the Braves in how their "win now" moves often backfire, and they play things uber conservatively. But the Giants have two championships, and the Braves have a decade of getting KO'd in the first round of the playoffs or not making it at all. The key distinction is that when things are at their worst, Bruce Bochy steps outside his comfort zone and does other things. Gonzalez didn't, and that's the difference between a great/good team and a championship/playoff team.
After this year, though, I've concluded Bochy is a pretty bad manager, but that character quality puts him a cut above a number of the other managers in baseball. By far, I think Joe Maddon is probably the best manager in the game, because he's flexible and smart but charismatic, so he doesn't alienate himself from his team or with his moves. He's by the book unless he has a gut feeling, and trusts his players a lot. In that regard,
Joe Maddon > Tony LaRussa > Bruce Bochy = Mike Scioscia > Freddy Gonzalez/Don Mattingly
To give my impression of a few number of prominent managers.