Just How Good is the Braves Starting Pitching?
by Little Lady on Apr 27, 2009 1:18 PM EDT
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PrintYesterday, during the game, Joe said something that was interesting. He was talking about how weird it was to see Roger McDowell come out for a mound chat. This got me thinking about how good our starting pitching has been so far this year, especially our top 3 starters.
Here are some numbers to think about:
- Lowe: In 5 starts - 3.10 ERA, 29 IP, 38 GO
- Jurrjens: In 4 starts - 1.42 ERA, 25.1 IP, .293 SLG
- Vasquez: In 4 starts - 2.63 ERA, 24 IP, 34 K, 4.86 K/BB, 12.75 K/9
All three have 2-1 records so far. And all 3 rank among the leaders in many categories.
- In ERA: Jurrjens is 3rd in the NL, Vasquez is 14th, and Lowe is 18th
- Vasquez is 4th in the Major Leagues in K/9 and 6th in the NL in K/BB
- Derek Lowe is 3rd in the NL in GO
How are the top 3 starters from other NL East teams doing?
Mets top 3 in IP:
- Santana: In 4 starts - 0.70 ERA, 25.2 IP, 37 K, 6.17 K/BB
- Perez: In 4 starts - 9.31 ERA, 19.1 IP, 15 BB, 6.98 BB/9
- Hernandez: In 3 starts - 7.31 ERA, 16 IP, 12.38 H/9
Phillies top 3 in IP (excluding Park, who was in bullpen for one game):
- Myers: In 4 gms - 4.91 ERA, 25 IP, 1.48 WHIP, .592 SLG, 4.21 BB/9, 8 HR
- Moyer: In 4 games - 5.09 ERA, 23 IP,1.57 WHIP, 11.74 H/9
- Blanton: In 3 games - 7.31 ERA, 16 IP, 1.81 WHIP, 14.06 H/9
Marlins top 4 in IP:
- Johnson: In 4 games - 2.20 ERA, 28.2 IP, 0.91 WHIP, 5.80 K/BB
- Volstad: In 4 games - 2.70 ERA, 23.1 IP, 5.79 H/9
- Nolasco: In 4 games - 6.86 ERA, 21 IP, 1.67 WHIP, 12.43 H/9
- Sanchez: In 3 games - 2.50 ERA, 18 IP, 0.95 WHIP
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we knew our top three were going to be $$$ its just what happens with the back of the pen and the last two spots in the rotation. speaking of that has glavine officially given up yet? between KK, JoJo, Parr, Medlan, Carlyle, Bennett, and probably Hansen there should be the parts internally to fill our needs.
hindsight is 20-13 just like Ted William actual vision- ken tremendous
in retrospect, the KK experiment does seem awfully expensive. not saying i’m convinced he’s a bust yet, but, man…that’s a lot of money to not be sure about your returns
"When life gives you lemons, just say 'Fuck the lemons,' and bail."
by Bravely going forward on Apr 27, 2009 2:01 PM EDT up reply actions
I am ready to call him a bust, and we’re stuck with him for two more years. Can’t wait until he tires during the second half like he’s supposed to.
One day three ducks were crossing the road going to get some soda, they weren't looking where they were going and a bus came along and hit them all and now they're handycapped and that's pretty much it. Handyquacks! And they didn't get their soda!!
why are you so ready?
he was outstanding in one game, decent in 2 others, and poor in his last. Let’s get out of April before we hang him.
Penis
by justincredubil02 on Apr 27, 2009 2:50 PM EDT up reply actions
No way is Kenshin a bust. He just has to make adjustments to the hitters. I’ve only been able to see him pitch once this year, and he seems to have good movement on his pitches. Although his fastball was only topping out at 85mph. I thought he was supposed to have about a 89-91mph fastball. Can anyone confirm that his fastball has been pretty slow this year? I think that’s the reason he’s getting knocked around. I guess if he can only pitch 85mph then he might be a bust, but it’s been less than a month. I’ll evaluate after he’s had a full season.
CC had a horrible start to last year and look how he ended, and not all of that was due to him coming to the NL. Some players are just slow starters (see Adam Laroche as the ultimate slow starter).
I don't think KK has been horrible...
Granted, yesterday’s outing certainly doesn’t help my argument. However, he has kept us in the game every other time he’s pitched. Plus, he’s good offensively and defensively. It’s refreshing to see a pitcher who knows how to hold a bat (besides on the opposing teams .cough.Micah Owings.cough.)
I think he’ll be a good #4 or #5 pitcher. Now, whether he’s really worth the contract he got…we’ll see.
"If I had a little humility, I would be perfect" - Ted Turner
Kawakami’s main problem has been a ridiculously low LOB% of 57% and a HR/FB of 21.7%. An average starter will be between 70-75% and 10%. No ERA qualifier last season posted rates lower than 64% and higher than 16%.
Knock his rates down to what the worst starters in each category had last season and you cut three runs off his total for the HR/FB rate which corrects his LOB rate to the what the worst starter posted last season. That drops his ERA over a run. Correcting his numbers to league average shaves 6-7 runs off his total – cutting over 2.5 runs off his ERA.
I also don’t expect him to walk a batter every other inning the rest of the season either.
I go with my gut.
One day three ducks were crossing the road going to get some soda, they weren't looking where they were going and a bus came along and hit them all and now they're handycapped and that's pretty much it. Handyquacks! And they didn't get their soda!!
by TradeAndruw on Apr 28, 2009 10:20 AM EDT up reply actions
KK has had 1 food start, 2 ok starts and 1 bad start. he isnt dead weight or anything. he gives you 6 ip (21 batters faced) per game, for the back end of the rotation that is reasonable.
hindsight is 20-13 just like Ted William actual vision- ken tremendous
by heapofoatmeal on Apr 27, 2009 2:42 PM EDT up reply actions
Food start? It’s not reasonable at 8 mil per year when we have much bigger problems. Morton and Jo-Jo could put up similar numbers for peanuts.
One day three ducks were crossing the road going to get some soda, they weren't looking where they were going and a bus came along and hit them all and now they're handycapped and that's pretty much it. Handyquacks! And they didn't get their soda!!
yeah, that was a typo…the g and the f are next to each other on my keyboard…
anyways, I disagree with you. KK has a proven track record of success in Japan. JoJo has a proven track record of inconsistancy and Morton has nothing of a track record woth noting.
Again, let’s get out of April.
Also, you have to take into consideration that at the time of the signing, KK was WELL within our budget. The market did not bottom out yet and other teams were interested. We grabbed him while we could. Plus, you also cannot ignore the fact that he will bring revenue and interest from the Japanese market and he opens the door for dealing further with Japanese players.
Penis
by justincredubil02 on Apr 27, 2009 2:53 PM EDT up reply actions
The Phillies pitching
Will get better, but still be behind the Fishies and Bravos
R.I.P. Chang Soysauce
This should come as no surprise
when the Phillies are trying the “2008 Atlanta Braves” experiment for their rotation (Injury-risk ace followed by a 40-something year old, followed by other injury risk/sucky pitchers) and the Muts are throwing a great #1 followed by less-than average starters in the #2 spot on down.
Penis
by justincredubil02 on Apr 27, 2009 2:35 PM EDT reply actions
Anyone else see...
The article Tom Verducci wrote about Japanese pitchers a few weeks ago?
To sum it up, it compares the type of development that Japanese pitchers go through, and sums up by the time they make the pro-level there, they’ve already got an enormous amount of pitches thrown from their arm comparatively to their overseas counterparts. It concerns around Daisuke Matsuzaka and his 27-year age, and his likelihood to even make it past four years of professional service.
That being said, and seeing as the 34-year old Hiroki Kuroda went on the DL already (oblique), it will be interesting to see how Kuroda and our own 34-year old Japanese pitcher fare handle the rigors of an entire season.
No wonder nobody likes you, Tuttle... everything's a (Pujols) damn debate.
That's an interesting article...
Has anyone else noticed the Smoltz-like shoulder thing he does after some pitches? It looks like he might be stretching it, or something.
I certainly hope that’s nothing to be too concerned about.
"If I had a little humility, I would be perfect" - Ted Turner
If you’re referring to the back-stroke like motion he does, then I have noticed it. It’s kind of like spinning in the opposite direction when dizzy, to try and correct it or something. Funny thing is that Kuroda does it too, and I recall Chan Ho Park doing it as well. It could be just one of those idiosyncrasies synonymous with Asian ballplayers, like high leg kicks prior to swinging the bat.
No wonder nobody likes you, Tuttle... everything's a (Pujols) damn debate.
Yes
Although the analysis was pretty weak, since he used W-L and ERA. Verducci does attempt to use K/9 but then implies that Irabu’s 0.3 drop was statistically significant, which it isn’t. And he glides by the fact that Nomo improved as he aged. It also just seems that his thesis is ill-formed. So a Japanese pitcher who comes over at 32 gets 2 years of productive MLB time? And a 26-year old does too, despite far fewer NPB IPs on his arm? I don’t see how that makes any sense.
I think the league-adjusts-to Japanese-pitcher meme is closer to the truth.
Formerly Uncle Charlie of Minor League Ball
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