Q.  But he was throwing better, right ...

A.  Despite the two mechanical gripes I have, Lueke was much "truer" down the centerline.  

His head was great, until the ball was already gone, and he got some CG acceleration.  It was 100 times better than his scared, tentative centerline jabs earlier this year.

Right now it looks like he's throwing very well, as far as his own motion goes.  And he was throwing into a teacup.  Just watching the baseball, you'd have thought he was Michael Pineda.

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Q.  Is there anything good about a Troy Percival motion?

A.  Rushed backswings do create excellent deception.  Provided the ball arrives anywhere near the strike zone, that is, it's a great weapon.  

The batter doesn't seem to be able to "target-lock" the release point as he usually would during a slow, smooth wind ... and, again, there's the impression of the pitcher "showing you the ball behind him" at a different place all the time, and for a much shorter time.

***

And Lueke releases the ball real high, real over the top, because of this feebleminded Troy Percival motion.  Here is his release point, and here is Daniel Bard's, and here is Felix Hernandez'.  You think Felix comes overhand, well, Lueke has him beat by the width of several baseballs.

Talk about throwing downhill.

***

And this obviously contributes to the deception on the offspeed pitch.  I mean, in a sense he's quick-pitching the hitters.  How do they get a vibe on whether it's offspeed, if he's sneaking the ball in there before their internal clock tells them it's time to read the ball?

***

Percival had the hottest fastball in the game for a long time; we're not comparing that.  We're asking whether a guy can throw upper 90's with these mechanical weirdnesses, and succeed doing it. ... a lot of max-effort relief aces get away with stuff.  Think Jeff Nelson.

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Q.  Under what circumstances would Lueke fail?

A.  He showed us, earlier.  Under the circumstances in which he doesn't execute his pitches.

He throws 91 mph and is wild, he gets crushed.  Sometimes it's a fine line ... Percival didn't have to lose all that much in order to go from hero to zero.

If Lueke were as sharp as tonight, all the time, he'd be effective all the time.  There are no such things as hitters who can consistently hit the pitches that Lueke threw Friday.

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Q.  Will Lueke be able to throw with command?

A.  I could never understand how Percival did.  :shrug:  And couldn't understand how Lee Trevino could hit a golf ball.

But Lueke's K/BB track record is impeccable, easily a match for Percival's, and Friday night he was painting like Doug Fister.

After one game at full thrust here, that is the only remaining question for Lueke:  whether he can throw strikes on a game-in, game-out basis.

If he can, he's their best reliever, him and League.  And Lueke seems to have nothing against thinking during competition.

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Cheerio,

Dr D