Whale

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Our Story to Date

On July 9th, Iwakuma had his 5th consecutive dubious game.  Well, number five wasn't dubious; numbers one, two, three and four were dubious, and number five was an early KO (six earnies to Boston in three innings).  

This was unsettling to most, because it meant that he'd started 35 games and had 5 bad ones ... all of which were the previous five.

We kid ... only a little.  In his first 30 starts, Iwakuma had thrown 27 lockdowns, and in the other three games he'd given up 4-5 runs.  Now, bam, 5 starts, all five of which were the kind of March 2012 performances that had 'Merkin scouts thinking he wuz a tomata can.

We wrote this article on the 11th.  The Exec Sum being:

• All pitchers, including and especially Verlander, have 6.00 ERA months.
• Ichiro was questioned EVERY year he had an off month in April.
• Iwakuma had given up 10 homers in those 5 games, not by bad luck, but by BP mistakes.
• His problem was command.  Not "stuff."  Surprisingly, his velo and break were fine.
• He didn't look like he was in pain to me, at all.
• Pitchers like Maddux, Moyer, and Iwakuma have to be razor sharp.  Imagine Jamie Moyer without his best command.  Well, that's what he was at the end of his career, when he was in AAA.
• Iwakuma is a virtuoso of self-correction.
• He was >50%, every game, cumulative, to self-correct in that game.  He would go on to be a top-10, top-15 starter in the AL for the next few years.

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Let's! Go! to the VIDeo Tape!

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Git yer game programs, five bucks, free scorecard.  Git yer scorecard!

Published before the game today, so if Erasmo gets shelled, don't blame me.  It is given to no mortal man to be assured of survival in the harsh, predator-infested jungle that is the American League (TM).

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Talking on TV about the release of Jeremy Bonderman, the skipper emphasized that it was "more about the guy we're bringing in" than it was about Bonderman.  Which, sure, we can take that one at face value.

Odd that the M's would be so coy about the new pitcher's identity.  Dr. D would like to kid himself that it could be Walker, Seattle Mariner (thanks Spec) or James Paxton -- who later that night threw a 9-IP complete-game shutout.  

Because you know Erasmo will be up soon, also.  I'd rather have a #3 and a #4 starter than just a #3 starter.  I'm a deep thinker.

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Miller, Franklin, and Zunino have completely lifted the cloud around the organization.  They have.

Eric Wedge is visibly relaxed, knowing for a fact that he's not going to be fired after the ballclub starts winning.  It won't matter if they're -4 under .500, if they are 16-and-11 the last four weeks.  

Wedge's installation of Mike Zunino at catcher, on a 6-days-a-week basis, without a net, is almost unprecedented.  It incredibly decisive and self-convicted for Wedge to make such a decision; remember, Zunino right now has less experience than Posey and Weiters did when they arrived in the bigs, and they set the standard for quick arrivals.  

The M's have a winning record overall in Zunino's starts, and have won 7 of the last 10 games that Zunino has started.  For Eric Wedge to watch two (2) games, and then to cut Kelly Shoppach, that was simply remarkable.  Obviously Mike Zunino delivered the things that Wedge was looking for.

One of the things that Wedge looks for, is being ready to hit -- to attack the right pitch once it gets there.  But don't be misled by the big blogs:  Wedge has said that Miller's best game to date was the one in which he went 0-for-2 ... with two walks.  

Don't underestimate Wedge's grasp of the pitcher-hitter battle!  He knows more about it, not less about it, than you and I do.  Eric Wedge was a pro catcher.  You and I weren't.

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After Sunday's game, the MLB.com article gave

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Although Franklin's shot was the only run scored in the first, the Seattle bats made Cincinnati starter Bronson Arroyo labor through the inning, as the 36-year-old right-hander threw 32 pitches in the opening frame.

"You can't just lay it in there against guys you don't know anything about," Reds manager Dusty Baker said of falling behind in the first inning. "After you learn something about them -- they've already homered off of you. They've got a good, young bunch of guys. They're going to be something to deal with in the next couple of years."

Two innings after jumping on the board first, the Mariners scored again on a two-run homer from Justin Smoak, who had been limited to pinch-hit duties while Kendrys Morales manned first base in the first two games of the series.

Wedge spoke after the game about the "light going off" with some of the team's younger players, and he included Smoak in that group.  

Q.  SSI would have us take what away from that, exactly?

A.  At field level, Dusty Baker came away with the impression that Justin Smoak is an exciting, dynamic young player.

At the World Baseball Classic, the dugouts came away with the impression that Michael Saunders was ready to take over the league.  He still may.  Such an impression is not the end of the discussion.  Neither is it worth nothing.  Smoak is lookin' good down there.

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Q.  Smoak is lookin' good?  Like what?

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Brad Miller, side silhouette, looks more like the MLB logo than Harmon Killebrew does.

If you missed the debut game of Miller, the TV crew did a quick lay-over of Miller in the box and the MLB logo.  This coaxed a chuckle even from Jay Buhner, who is not known for comparing rookies to MLB legends.  

Miller has the bat loaded at just the right angle, has the perfect nose, has his cap set the right way, even has his thumb cocked just right ... I don't know why I remember the MLB logo as having that kind of a thumb on it; I guess it doesn't.  (Aha!  My memory was confusing Ken Griffey with the MLB logo.  Understandable.)  Anyway, Miller uses bare hands on the bat, which definitely adds to the effect.

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Somebody chose the MLB logo, in part, because the angle of the bat --- > comes off as dynamic to the human eye.  So does Brad Miller's.  There's an article in there somewhere, but I ain't gonna write it.