Mid-Season Report Cards - The Pitchers
Josh Beckett – 11-3, 3.35 – A
Interesting Stat – Hitters leading off innings have a .208 OBP against him
The start wasn’t pretty leading one blogger to ask if Beckett was injured. Since the calendar turned to May it’s been all peaches and cream. He is throwing strikes and he has had both the fastball and curveball working well. Health will be the issue with Beckett but when he’s right he’s as good as they come.
Jon Lester – 8-6, 3.87 – B
Interesting Stat – Base runners 10 for 10 when stealing on non-pickoffs against him
Like Beckett, heck like the entire rotation, Lester did not get off to a good start. In his case I felt it was obviously not going to be an issue as so much of it was based on a BABIP that was sure to come down. What is fascinating about his performance is the way he is striking people out, 10.3/9IP, something only ten men have done in the 2000s.
Tim Wakefield – 11-3, 4.31 – B
Interesting Stat – .525 OPS in 1st inning, Career .661 OPS in 1st inning
I wonder if Wake is doing something different in his pregame to improve his start? For all the hullabaloo this season isn’t really any different from 2003-2008 for Wake. Virtually every stat he has would fit right in any of those years. Not to take anything away from him, he’s been a key contributor for many years and this year is no different. I’m sure there is a metric for it but it seems he has been more consistent this year than in years’ past. The biggest benefit so far has been his health and hopefully that will continue into the 2nd half.
Brad Penny – 6-3, 4.71 – B
Interesting Stat – Nine Quality Starts
After a couple of real ugly starts to open the season Penny has become a hard throwing version of Wakefield. Nothing brilliant but every start since getting spanked in Cleveland he has gone at least five innings in all 13 starts allowing three or fewer runs eleven times. That he has taken the ball every fifth day is what bumps this up to a "B" for me.
Daisuke Matsuzaka – 1-5, 8.23 – F
Interesting Stat – .443 BABIP
From the sounds of things the Sox have sent him to Ft. Myers with the plan to basically start over. I’ll be surprised if he makes any kind of impact in 2009. I have a hard time believing he wasn’t dealing with a pretty significant injury right from the get-go.
John Smoltz – 1-2, 5.40 – C
Interesting Stat – 4.25K:BB ratio
So far he’s been about what could have been realistically expected and in my opinion a bit better. He’s really had two bad innings accounting for eight of his twelve runs allowed and that K/BB ratio is very good. I am fairly optimistic about his chances to be very good in the second half.
Jonathan Papelbon – 1-1, 1.85 – C
Interesting Stat – 64% Strike Percentage
It is indisputable that Jonathan Papelbon has not been the same pitcher in 2009 that he was from 2005-2008. He certainly has not been bad but the indicators are less than positive. The Sox need the old version of Papelbon or there are going to be some painful blown saves at inopportune times.
Ramon Ramirez – 5-3, 2.33 – A
Interesting Stat – LHB hitting .172 against him
Ramirez has really been a stalwart performer so far for Terry Francona. His versatility has been clutch as he leads the Sox bullpen (tied actually with Masterson) with nine appearances of more than one inning and has served in just about every role entering games in the 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th and 11th inning at different times this year.
Hideki Okajima – 3-0, 3.32 – C
Interesting Stat – Best on team 12% inherited runners scored
Just money in the bank it seems. I still don’t know how he does it but he clearly baffles hitters and he leads relievers in first pitch strike % making his deceptive approach more effective.
Manny Delcarmen – 2-1, 2.41 – B
Interesting Stat – 15.8% K Rate
The declining K rate is cause for concern and his walk rate is also up. I think part of the problem for Delcarmen is that Francona seems to lift him at the first sign of trouble. Despite his reputation he has pitched well in key spots and should be a guy the Sox can depend on but I won’t be surprised if he is dealt in whatever deadline trade the Sox engineer.
Takashi Saito – 2-2, 3.52 – B
Interesting Stat – Bases Empty OPS - .903, Men on base OPS - .596
Saito has done a nice job but it seems like he is in the same boat as Delcarmen and not really trusted by Francona. It seems that his role is to fill in for whatever pitcher is tired that night and he’s never really Tito’s first choice. Still, when the fill in guy has a 3.52 ERA that ain’t bad.
Justin Masterson – 3-3, 4.98 – D
Interesting Stat – ERA as of June 27th – 3.66
The last ten days have really messed up Justin Masterson’s season. Still, those ten days do count. It is hard to say why he got hammered in those games against Baltimore and Kansas City. Is he really rubber-armed or did fatigue play a factor at the end of the 1st half?
Daniel Bard – 0-0, 2.55 – A
Interesting Stat – 5.8% XBH allowed, 2nd on team
After a nightmare of a 2007 season Daniel Bard has been steaming towards this moment. He has quite likely moved up the depth chart in the bullpen pretty significantly. The only concern right now is whether the league’s inevitable adjustments will prove too much for him to handle. Given the mix of an overpowering fastball and a nasty slider/curveball (have we decided yet?) I think he is capable of being a top reliever.
Javier Lopez – 0-2, 9.26 – F
Interesting Stat – 0 earned runs vs. Yankees and Angels
I’m pounded Lopez enough on this blog over the years. He was terrible and anything more than that would be piling on a guy who contributed to the 2007 World Champions.
Hunter Jones – 0-0, 8.00 – D
Interesting Stat – 0 earned runs in first three appearances
Jones gave the Sox a couple of nice outings to get his MLB career going then stumbled after that. Still, coming into a 1st and 2nd, one out situation and retiring Matsui and Melky on ESPN is something to tell the kids.
Michael Bowden – 0-0, 0.00 – A
Interesting Stat – Team High 33% K Rate
One outing, six up, six down. Like Jones he did it against the Yanks on ESPN (same game) helping the Sox to a victory. I believe his stuff is not-ready-for-prime-time and his value to the Sox is as a trade chip.
