Having listened to Marty & Jeff & whoever else they use on a given day stumble over themselves at some of the more interesting managerial decision of the dusty baker that manages to put his touch on the Reds, here are my baker's dozen, or my 13 favorite nuggets of wisdom that i have learned from the baker...

1 You must do everything in your power to fanagle the lineup in order to get a lefty-righty-lefty-righty alternating starting lineup.

2 You must rest hitters after they have a big day hitting. Hot streaks are meant to be killed on the bench.

3 Regardless of how a pitcher does in the 8th inning, you must bring in a new pitcher to pitch the 9th inning - especially in all save situations.

4 A pitcher with a 5.50 ERA is always a better option vs. a lefty hitter than a pitcher with a 1.50 ERA.

5 Any young starting pitcher with a 100mph fastball must be moved to the bullpen - ideally as a situational lefty. But under no circumstances should he start.

6 A backup who can play 4 positions, but with an OPS of 0.500 is always a better player to have on your roster than a backup who can only play 2 positions, but comes with an OPS of 0.900.

7 A roster must always include multiple light-hitting utility players. Ideally your entire roster will be filled with them.

8 Willie Harris is always your best bet for the pinch-hitter role with the bases loaded and 2 outs.

9 A left-handed hitter who has an OPS of 0.900 facing a LH pitcher is always less desirable than a right-handed hitter who has an OPS of 0.500 facing a LH pitcher - regardless of how well the left-handed hitter hits lefties.

10 A veteran hitter is always better to have than a rookie/younger hitter....even if the veteran is a mediocre has-been or never-was, and the young player is a rookie of the year calibre hitter.

11 A rotation of starting pitchers should ideally rotate between 'fast' pitchers, and 'slow' pitchers. It should not be related to how good the pitchers actually are.

12 Toothpicks and computers are more indespensable than leadership and gut instinct when looking for key qualities in a manager.

13 Corey Patterson is always a must-start. He may only hit 0.190, but it's a solid 0.190.