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So here are the last three game logs for Taijuan, Seattle Mariner:
- Jun 10 6 ip 8 h 1 r 1 er 2 bb 6 k 0 hr with 63/92k and 6/2 grounders vs flyballs
- June 3 8 ip 5 h 3r 3 er 1 bb 7 k 2 hr with .150 BABIP
- May 29 8 ip 2! h 0 r 0 er 0 bb 8 k 2 hr with 73/102 strikes
If we're adding them up on our fingers and toes, or better yet b-ref'com's Game Log Summary Device gives our #5 SP's last three starts as:
- 22 IP
- 15 hits
- 4 runs
- 4 earned runs
- 3 BB
- 21 K
- More strikeouts than hits is an interesting concept for the hitters
- 1.64 ERA
- 71% strikes (46% is the norm according to this page rat cheer)
If we were to compare the above three lines to a pitcher who had done it over the slightly longer period 2012-14, the closest matches would be Kershaw, Felix, Sale, and David Price. Just sayin'. As you know, we are about context, not resume submission.
Had you noticed that he did it to three LEFTY stacked lineups? Had you noticed that two of these lineups were Cleveland's? The Yank$ are running out McCann, Teixeira, Drew, Beltran, Headley, Gardner and others. And in Cleveland's case, the whalings of Kipnis (.340), Brantley (sweet slash line) Brandon Moss, Swisher, Michael Bourn, and David Murphy brought them little more joy two weeks on than it had the first time.
So Taijuan Walker, while battling himself desperately to learn the game, has crumpled three consecutive left hand lineups. There's a reason he sells like he does. You ain't gonna see these shenanigans from Vidal Nuno. In Scout parlance, he is "flashing" abilities that other major league players cannot dream of possessing.
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A TALE OF THREE TAIJAUNS
You know 'em, you love 'em, the diagram boxes that show BAD Taijuan throwing a 93 fastball high, and then an 89 changeup high. Giving no "depth" to the strike zone, but plenty of "depth" to the hitter's strikes.
MID Taijuan drives the fastball high and deep, forcing the batters to get lungy. He then crosses them up with a SERVICEABLE, NOT SO AS TO SAY GOOD spikeball that plays wayyyyy up based on the "dead red" offenses. The result? You just asked that, Gumby. :: roll eyes :: See above. This was the Taijuan of 2014, dominating fastball, ahead in the count, power change/slider juuuuust baaaaarely enough to keep them a little bit honest.
GOOD Taijuan can do much more than can MID Taijuan. That's another, pleasant, discussion. For now, Taijuan has found a simple 2-pitch game that has solved his problems and returned him to 2014 effectiveness. (Did we mention that 2 pitches were the key? On June 10 he threw 64 heaters, 22 spikeballs, and six "others." In a roundabout way, I think Rick Waits said "you got 97, dude, use it!" he snuck his 2-pitch idea past Lloyd McClendon.
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TWIN RAIL GUNS, ONE RIGHT AND ONE LEFT
With K-Pax the early struggles were never a worry. By "early struggles" we mean Day 2 of the 2015 season, or the 2013 season in the minors, or his holdout year off, any other time he struggled. The reason being, within the major league game his arsenal has no defense, real or theoretical. Also, his game is ridiculously easy to execute. (Just stop right there. You know what we mean.) :: nods, satisfied ::
Taijuan -- for Dr. D at least -- has always taken the mound standing right next to a bright purple 4' rucksack of worry. He's a high school pitcher, his offspeed stuff (all of it) has been problematic from the word Go, he doesn't have any natural pitchability, and if the basic idea is "throw it past that big hairy guy over there" the basic result will be 2.0 homers per nine innings.
But if (1) be Bad Taijuan, (2) be Mid Taijuan, and (3) be Good Taijuan? I'd say his last three games were 2.0, then 1.8, then 2.3. He had something of a feel on his spikeball Wednesday.
.........
Which leaves our rotation where? In the last 30 days, the rotation has the #4 ERA in baseball. The pitching looks fixed, give or take twelve inches of duct tape. That'll buy them some time to figure out how to hit grand slams. (This year's team OPS+ is 100, compared to the "One Game Short" Mariners' OPS+ of 96).
Fortunately, Houston has forgotten how to hit them, so the forecast June 11-18 is sunny. The M's took three weeks to figure out their pitching; if it took them two-and-a-half months to figure out "timely hitting," we can work with that.
BABVA,
Dr D
