Kevork Djansezian/Getty ImagesMLB playoff subterfuge reached critical ma

ss Wednesday in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Milwaukee Brewers.Brewers manager Craig Counsell removed starting pitcher Wade Miley after he threw just five pitches. According to The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal Adam Engel Jersey , that was all part ofCounsell's strategy:Ken Rosenthal Ken_RosenthalRemoving Miley was Brewers?plan. He will start Game 6.Brandon Woodruff came on in relief and pitched a scoreless first inning.Plenty of writers had fun with Counsell's unique approach:Joe Sheehan joe_sheehanquot;Wade, what kind of stuff did you have out there today?quot;Bill Plunkett billplunkettocrFor all of you old-schoolers who think todays starting pitchers are coddled -- Wade Miley will probably start consecutive games in this #NLCS.Satisfied?joon joonleewade miley ellXjan1NFD.J. Short djshortAnother scoreless start for Wade Miley, wowCounsell has pushed the idea of "bullpenning" to its extreme throughout the postseason.Entering Wednesday, the trio of Miley http://www.whitesoxfanproshop.com/authentic-paul-konerko-jersey , Jhoulys Chacin and Gio Gonzalez had combined to pitch 23.2 innings in six games.Taking Miley out of the game so quickly is obviously risky, but Counsell's thinking is easy to understand. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts will have built his starting lineup around facing a left-handed starter. Instead, Los Angeles gets the right-handed Woodruff.GiveCounsell credit for thinking outside the box, though he'll likely face a lot of criticism if the Brewers drop Game 5 and fall behind 3-2 in the series. The deal seems to be a win-win for everyone."Whit Merrifield was a tenth-round pick out of South Carolina who had to prove himself at each minor league level Lucas Giolito Jersey , was once left unprotected for the Rule 5 draft, failed to make the 2017 Opening Day roster despite a solid MLB debut, and ended up leading the Majors in hits and steals last year. This week, he inked a four-year http://www.whitesoxfanproshop.com/authentic-paul-konerko-jersey , $16.25 million deal with a club option for 2023 that should give him some financial security. What are the reactions to the deal?First of all, here is a complete financial breakdown.Whit was relieved to avoid the arbitration process.Rustin Dodd writes at The Athletic that Merrifield is opting for financial security.Sam Mellinger writes the deal makes sense for both sides.Jeff Todd at MLB Trade Rumors evaluates what each side gave up in the deal.Craig Edwards at Fangraphs also thinks the deal is pretty reasonable for both sides.Jon Tayler at Sports Illustrated thinks the deal may be a symptom of the slow market.Whit’s teammates were certainly happy for him.Whit even had support across the parking lot.And the fans were happy to see Whit get his deal.And Whit has a message for you fans:We look forward to seeing what Whitley can do in the future!