Erasmo Goes On April 1
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So on Wednesday, Erasmo goes out and detonates a Ranger lineup that:
- Is familiar with him from past encounters (3 games, 2.38 ERA)
- Features the LH Shin-Soo Choo leading off, and the LH Prince Fielder hitting 3rd
- Has Kevin Kouzmanoff, Keith Moreland, but not (as far as Dr. D could tell) Jurickson Profar, Nelson Cruz, Josh Hamilton, Ian Kinsler, Michael Young, or Mike Napoli
- Immediately mulched Charlie Furbush upon his entrance into the game
Erasmo pitched 5, walked 0, fanned 6, and gave up 3 hits. Furbush allowed the 1 run to score.
Erasmo leads the ballclub in innings pitched, with 23.2, and he has --- > 20 strikeouts against 2 walks. No homers. I'm not much for sabermetrics, but a 20/2/0 Three True Outcomes looks okay to me.
Particularly from your 5 starter.
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Stylistically, Erasmo is effective when he (1) Deploys his fastball as 3 pitches: Jam, Ladder, Knees/Black -- and then (2) comes back with the fancy changeup and occasional slider. Exactly the Doug Fister attack.
The major difference between Ramirez and Fister: Ramirez cannot miss out-and-over, much. His fastball is deceptively short and he has to be careful.
On the other hand, Ramirez throws quite a bit harder than Doogie. But in both cases you are talking about 7K, 2BB pitchers who are cut out of the same template.
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Ron Shandler's Baseball Forecaster says "2013 injury derailed possible breakout season ... he still owns those 2011-12 skills (a sky-high 102 Base Performance Value, comparable to that of Shields, Iwakuma, and Fister). UP: 3.50 ERA"
GameDay shows the first hitter today, Shin Soo-Choo, facing a baffling array of weapons through the course of 8 pitches. Finally on pitch 7, Erasmo set him up with a changeup juussst off the plate, and then on pitch 8, used a take-him-up-the-ladder fastball that blew him down.
Erasmo is obviously as sharp as a tack right now. Would his 20/2/0 spring mean anything to a rotisserie geek living in New Jersey? Sure it would. Ron Shandler his ownself, if he's playing this year, will be looking to grab Ramirez with both hands. At a discount, of course.
Meanwhile, the rotations of the Rangers and A's may get off to a slow start. Maybe in the first few weeks the M's will come out of the gate with a bang?
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