Eddie Jurak said:We haven't seen anyone since Papelbon come right up and just blow guys away with his stuff - until now.
True, I meant to say we haven't seen a starter do it since Papelbon.Ed Hillel said:
Bard did, until he went mental.
Now we can all go back to liking Farrell, right? Clearly, Edro gives him the best chance to win games now, and he is making that call rather than deferring to Masterson/Kelly, which is great news for us fans who actually have to watch these games.Laser Show said:Farrell, on whether EdRo is going back to Pawtucket: "The only way he's going back to Pawtucket is if he stops there on the way to Baltimore"
pokey_reese said:Now we can all go back to liking Farrell, right? Clearly, Edro gives him the best chance to win games now, and he is making that call rather than deferring to Masterson/Kelly, which is great news for us fans who actually have to watch these games.
The deadro ball era!canderson said:What's he's done in his two starts is quite historic.
@EliasSports: Rodriguez is the 1st pitcher since 1900 to go 7.0+ IP and allow no more than 1 run and 3 hits in his first 2 MLB outings.
What's he's done in his two starts is quite historic.
@EliasSports: Rodriguez is the 1st pitcher since 1900 to go 7.0+ IP and allow no more than 1 run and 3 hits in his first 2 MLB outings.
Sure, but those 17.2 IP of 0 ER relief in 1980 completely take Valenzuela out of the running.joe dokes said:Still has a way to go to match FernandoMania --- 1st 8 starts......8-0......0.50ERA(!)......8CG(!!)......5 shutouts(!!!)....68Ks...... 43H....(he pitched 10 games in relief at the tail end of 1980) and he hit .360 during that stretch.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/gl.cgi?id=valenfe01&t=p&year=1981
TigerBlood said:
"We felt after his debut there was an injection of energy and optimism. Eddie gives us a boost in that way," Farrell continued. "Certainly no way he's going to come out of the rotation."
phrenile said:Sure, but those 17.2 IP of 0 ER relief in 1980 completely take Valenzuela out of the running.
rembrat said:I think it means they're going to keep going with the 6 man until someone forces (performance or injury) themselves out of it.
koufax37 said:
Unfortunately probably close to as similar to Doubront and Johan, but I see lots of good things. Actually reminds me more of Washburn than either of those other guys.
The two things that have impressed me so far are:
1) Pounding the zone with plus fastballs. Today he had two swinging strikeouts on 0-2 fastballs that caught a lot of the plate.
2) His release seems to make it very difficult for RHB to recognize his breaking ball and lay off it even when it finishes down and in. Today on the 3rd inning strikeout of Robinson it was really obvious, but he has had more of those throughout the first two starts. The fact that he also throws it for a strike will also help people from just laying off it.
#1 is always a personal favorite of mine, but #2 if not a SSS mirage is actually what made Randy Johnson special, and it is particularly effective when paired with the fastball strikes. I'm hoping to see him survive the second time through teams without having either of those two great qualities getting eroded by a changed approach in opposing lineups, but so far I'm really impressed and optimistic.
And that is before even considering his really decent changeup, which while not having a traditional lefty change-artist arm angle, I think has the potential to be a great third pitch to avoid being too predictable.
BOSTON -- Minnesota outfielder Torii Hunter -- who turns 40 next month, has been in the big leagues for 19 seasons and has kids in college -- burst out laughing Wednesday when a visitor asked him if Red Sox left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez reminded him at all of Johan Santana, who won two Cy Young Awards while a teammate of Hunter's on the Twins.
"Oh, hell no," Hunter said. "I played behind Santana for years. I know him really well. He doesn't look at all like Santana."
But when he had stopped chuckling, Hunter made sure his visitor understood something else about Rodriguez, who had just held the Twins to two hits and a run in seven innings five days after he had shut out the Texas Rangers for 7 2/3 innings.
"He was nasty," Hunter said. "Don't get it twisted. He pitched a helluva game. But Santana and him, he's got to put in some work to do that."
The 22-year-old Rodriguez, a native son of Venezuela, grew up idolizing fellow countryman Santana, and last spring got to work with him while they were both rehabbing from injuries in extended spring training with the Orioles. Santana was a huge help, Rodriguez said, especially with his changeup. And after he won his major league debut last week against the Texas Rangers, there was a text message waiting on his phone from Santana: "Welcome to the big leagues."
"That's his best pitch, by far," Hunter said. "The heater is his pitch. If he can keep that up, throwing 94 to 96, I think that kid can be special.Hunter, batting cleanup for the Twins in their 6-3 loss to the Red Sox, faced Rodriguez three times Wednesday afternoon, grounding out all three times. And while he didn't see the resemblance this side-by-side comparison suggests, Hunter came away persuaded that Rodriguez was no ordinary pitcher. Especially after he got a batter's box view of Rodriguez's 95 mph fastball.
"The changeup? From 1 to 10, I'd give it about a 7 -- 6 or 7. His slider, his third pitch, about a 5. That's just enough because he throws so hard, the third pitch doesn't have to be great. Just enough."
The fastball can be devastating, Hunter said, not just because of the velocity.
"It's a four-seam that cuts," Hunter said. "I think he gets around the ball and throws it at an angle and he's in on righties. A lot. If he can live in there on righties, then sometimes show in, then boom, hit ‘em away, the guy's going be special.
"He threw me changeups. Ninety-six and then he throws changeups. That's a good combo. That's what Johan did, but Johan had a great slider, too."
Kilgore A. Trout said:Perhaps this is a stupid question, but why doesn't the velocity on the off speed pitches go down when the arm loses strength with age at something at least comparative to the fastball?
gryoung said:Presuming he stays in the rotation, is there an innings ceiling he's working against and what could that be?
nvalvo said:
In 2013, he threw 145 IP. In 2014, he threw 120. He's thrown 63 or so thus far in 2015.
I think they'd aim for 170-180.
Sprowl said:
Yes, I think this is the variable that limits Edro's ceiling as a pro pitcher -- can batters adjust to him? I'm inclined to think that his changeup isn't that easy a pitch to hit even when the batter guesses offspeed. For one thing, he throws it tailing away or low most of the time, so he's not (yet) wild in the strike zone with his secondary pitches.
...
For another, velocity separation again in a full 7 mph. That's not great by MLB standards, but it is enough to miss a few bats, change a few eye levels, and upset a few timing clocks. What I love about Edro's command in addition to pounding the strike zone is that he was throwing inside fastballs to RHB all game long, and he hit his spots without hitting any batters. When the primary pitch averages 94 mph and hits the spot, almost any offspeed pitch will do, and Edro's got two.
The Twins packed their lineup with RHB and got nothing to show for it, except for Dozier's HR off a down-and-in fastball. It appears that the Red Sox' book on Dozier was to throw low in the zone, and Dozier showed that he could handle the low fastball.
jscola85 said:Have not felt as excited after two starts by a homegrown pitching product since Clay Buchholz threw a no-no in his 2nd start. Would have to go back almost to Juan Pena for another homegrown guy who was this electric to start out of the gate - still stings thinking about Pena after over 15 years.
Wake's knuckle said:Yeah, it's pretty amazing that he can throw a fastball right down the middle and get strike three swinging.
You missed an awesome trade deadline last summer I see. Eddie was acquired from Baltimore in the Andrew Miller trade.jscola85 said:Have not felt as excited after two starts by a homegrown pitching product since Clay Buchholz threw a no-no in his 2nd start. Would have to go back almost to Juan Pena for another homegrown guy who was this electric to start out of the gate - still stings thinking about Pena after over 15 years.
The manager announced Eduardo Rodriguez will slide in between Clay Buchholz and Rick Porcello in the rotation, so the lefty will start Tuesday in Baltimore. It would appear the last spot in the rotation will come down to Joe Kelly (Saturday’s starter) and Steven Wright (Thursday’s starter).
Both have bullpen experience, so it would seem whoever doesn’t stay in the rotation will be sent to the bullpen. Kelly is 1-4 with a 5.83 ERA in 10 starts this year and hasn’t won since his first start of the season in New York. Wright is 2-2 with a 3.90 ERA in five appearances (three starts) this year. As a starter he’s gone at least five innings and allowed three runs or less in all three of his starts.
RedOctober3829 said:I'd much rather have Kelly go to the pen than Wright. Kelly's stuff transitions to the pen much more smoothly than Wright. The pen badly needs a power setup arm.
Missing high and away arm side and down and glove side a decent amount, usually a sign a pitcher is having trouble finding his release point. Wasn't bad by any means, as he wasn't missing over the plate and generally to where Swihart was setting up, but command wasn't quite as good as previous two starts. Long-term, he still needs to improve his secondary stuff, but he has a FB that is plus to plus-plus right now that he can generate swings and misses on.Savin Hillbilly said:I didn't see tonight's game, but judging by Eduardo's pitch count through 6 innings I gather it was a bit more of a slog than his previous outings. Still, no runs is no runs. He has now allowed 1 run through his first 20 major league innings. I wonder how often that happens?
Good observation on the release point. His release point on Pitchf/x shows that he was releasing at or above 6 feet when in his first two starts and he was at or below six feet last night. Hopefully it's something they notice and correct.Chuck Z said:Missing high and away arm side and down and glove side a decent amount, usually a sign a pitcher is having trouble finding his release point. Wasn't bad by any means, as he wasn't missing over the plate and generally to where Swihart was setting up, but command wasn't quite as good as previous two starts. Long-term, he still needs to improve his secondary stuff, but he has a FB that is plus to plus-plus right now that he can generate swings and misses on.