The cat-and-mouse of a manager’s battle extends well beyond the baseball field. There are often wars of words and mental jousting. And if a manager really wants to poke his counterpart in the eye, he can mess with the daily lineup. If the other team doesn’t know who’s playing and where, they can’t counterpunch.
On Thursday at Coors Field, Cincinnati Reds manager Bryan Price dispensed with the duel. His second baseman, Brandon Philips, was listed as questionable to play because of a sore ankle. But instead of waiting until near game time to exchange lineups with Colorado skipper Walt Weiss, he sent two lineup cards to the Rockies with an explanation why.