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In response to
"How is that a no-no? A five run lead in the seventh means don't steal? I'm sorry but that's not a big lead. He might not be liked be he did nothing"
by
Krusty
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In the NL East, maybe. Not in the AL East.
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It looks like it was indifference because (apparently) nobody was covering third. So there was probably a shift on. Taking third might change the shift, giving the batter a better chance to hit. And if you have your players take an open base any time it's available, your opponents will have to account for that in other games. If it was Madden's call, it was probably about future games more than that game.
I think it was also a factor that Boston had just tied it up earlier in the inning, and Tampa answered with 5 runs in their half of the inning. Maybe trying to extend the inning more, get Boston to use more pitchers. Tampa plays them again in 4 days. Boston plays all of those days (including 2 in an NL park) while the Rays have an off day before the first game in Boston. They score another run or two that inning, maybe Boston uses another pitcher. And maybe it makes one of their bullpen guys unavailable when they play in a few days.
Maybe it was just Escobar being Escobar. But even so, 5 runs in an inning is possible for most teams in the AL East. A 5-run lead in the 7th isn't an automatic win.
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