Terry Francona's gamble suddenly puts Reds in perfect position to stun Dodgers

Perhaps Terry Francona knew something the rest of us don't. The Cincinnati Reds manager made an extremely questionable managerial decision on Tuesday, but it turned out to be the right one as his team is set to begin a best-of-three Wild Card Series against the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Reds are expected to send their ace, Hunter Greene, to the mound in Game 1 of the series at Dodger Stadium. It's the best-case pitching scenario for Cincinnati, and one that the Reds wouldn't be in if it weren't for their manager sticking to his guns against a chorus of naysayers.

Terry Francona's controversial decision appears to have turned out wonderfully as the Reds gear up for the Dodgers

Francona had the choice on Tuesday to start a fully-rested Greene against the Pittsburgh Pirates, which would have allowed Greene to pitch Sunday's season finale against the Milwaukee Brewers.

At the time, fans and analysts alike pretty much unanimously agreed that the smartest move for Cincy was to start Greene on Tuesday so that he'd be available to start a potential must-win game on Sunday to save the Reds' playoff hopes.

Francona didn't side with the masses, however. Instead, Francona decided to keep his rotation in order with Brady Singer starting on Tuesday (and also in the season finale, both losses for Cincinnati). Greene started last Tuesday against Pirates' ace Paul Skenes (another loss).

With all of those L's mentioned above, it sure looks like Tito made the wrong decision, right? Wrong. Despite losing the Pirates series, the Reds won 2-of-3 in Milwaukee to end the year, which was just enough to get in, as the New York Mets continued their colossal collapse by choking right up until their finale against the Miami Marlins on Sunday.

In spite of all the massive pressure heading into game No. 162, the Reds ultimately didn't need to win on Sunday to get in, which would have made a Greene start an ill-timed waste. Instead, Greene will now pitch Game 1 against the Dodgers, and Francona's gamble looks like the smartest move in baseball.

Francona plays to win, and his natural aggression and instinctual approach -- combined with his championship experience -- told him that putting all his chips on the table just to "get in" wasn't wise, because what's the use of reaching the playoffs if you're not able to put your best foot forward once you're there?

A less-established manager than Francona may have taken the opposite approach, thinking that a playoff appearance would be a more than worthwhile goal -- an important addition to the resumé.

But since Francona's already been to the mountaintop in his career and shown that he's an elite manager, he has no fear of missing the playoffs, which allowed him to approach the end of the season thinking freely and with a winner's mindset, not with the attitude of someone trying not to lose.

That's the exact type of mindset that it will take for a team to knock off the Dodgers in the postseason, by the way, which has Francona and the Reds thinking, 'Why not us?'

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