..... A's 7
=== Dr Grumpy Shoots He Scooooooores ===
:: Rich Eisen :: After his last start, we offered a 7-part series on Felix' career transition. If you're here for the afterparty, you can read the first article here. Collect all 7.
In the first six articles, I guessed an 80% to 90% chance that Felix' 94 MPH was gone to stay, but also a 90% plus chance that he'd take the Pedro route to stardom, not the Valdes / Freddy route to meatballdom. Captain, please bring me my wine... We haven't had that spirit here since 1969.
But Dr Grumpy, our resident SSI/MC gastro surgeon, had a different inclination. If Felix lost that much weight, sez he, some could be lean body mass. That would mean that probably he wasn't feeling a lot of jingle in his spurs. That, in turn, would mean that maybe his training was "lagging" and if so, you could see a gradual return of velocity.
Dr. Grumpy, we are confident, will read this Brooks Baseball chart as a thunderous reinforcement of his instincts:
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Felix came out with a crackling +2 to +3 MPH that had Dr. D swaying beatifically to the music. The circles above represent his fastball velocity as the game wore on, and the decay looks like grrreeeeeeat news from the layman's seat. It's a velocity pattern that you would see in the first game of spring training. He showed the 91-93 MPH that he had not in earlier games, and now it looks like a question of building endurance.
No question about the radar gun. It had Felix at 91.5 to 92.0, while pegging Wilhelmsen at 94.1 and League at 94.1.
Genius, Dr. G. Hope you turn out to be right.
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=== The Changeup ===
Even better than the fastball velo, was the changeup velo. On the same chart above, you see the changeups clustering at 86 to 89 mph. Earlier this year, they were 84-87, whereas last year they'd been 87-89.
His changeup was nuking batters until they glowed. Check out that early cluster of 17 changeups, far left. On the night, 47 of his 102 pitches were changeups! No, that's not F/X confusion. See this chart. The middle cluster of 86-89 pitches were diving like WWII Stukkas, and somehow four of them had TOPspin. You cannot throw a pitch that clocks 87 MPH and breaks down vs. vacuum. 87 mph is a fastball for Kevin Millwood. It's not a breaking pitch.
Felix threw the changeup again and again and again, daring the A's to do anything, turning to his beloved change like a bromance on a dark and stormy night. On the pitch chart, check the swinging strikes column. At the moment, the changeup is what tethers Skinny Felix to the maypole of greatness.
If Dr. Grumpy's right, we got four to six starts before that's not even necessary any more.
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=== Capt Insano ===
Last night, we whined that the A's were sitting dead red on Wilhelmsen. Tonight, he stepped up there and ... 12-6 yellow hammers, first pitch, EVERY hitter. Under pressure, some focus, others fold, sez Al Pacino. Wilhelmsen focused - on driving stakes through the A's hearts.
I tell yer, the look in this guy's eyes is riveting. It's like he can barely contain himself from killing somebody. If a guy looked at me like that in the street, I'd grab a trash can lid and hide under it.
.........
The ump was ridiculous.
To Kurt Suzuki, Capt Insano started with that Aaron Sele hammer for 0-1. He followed with a moving 95 mph fastball that started down the middle and dove to the low inside corner. The F/X showed that it was actually inside the zone; never mind whether a pitcher deserves an inch or two, this was a strike. O'Nora said nothing.
1-1 count. Suzuki with a pleasant count, thanks to that howler. Do you know what MLB hitters bat, on 0-2 counts?
Capt Insano popped him up next pitch, anyway. Dr. D crushed his gum some more.
........
To Cliff Pennington, he came in with a 77 curve RIGHT DOWN THE MIDDLE. F/X showed it 6 inches above the knees. O'Nora sat there and Dr. D imagined a little smile on his face.
So imagine you're in a major league game, score 8-7 late, and you throw the best hook of your life, precisely where you lock up the hitter for an easy called strike. The ump shrugs. What do you do? Cry? Throw your mitt? Elbow drop the ump from the top turnbuckle, and change sports?
Wilhelmsen re-set himself on the rubber and came in with a fastball to get back to 1-1. On pitch five, Pennington popped up a curve. Blinkin' good thing the ump was teaming with Cliff Pennington and not with Albert Pujols.
.......
To Kila Ka'aihue, Wilhelmsen got a curve called for 0-1 and then ... struck out the ump on the next curve again. HUUUUGE yellow hammer BISECTING the plate, diving down through the strike zone to finish AT the knees, per F/X.
O'Nora with another howler. See how you like 1-1, Tom. If you thought O'Nora was kidding on the first two hitters, now you know.
Did we mention what MLB hitters produce after 0-2 counts? Grrrrrrrrrrrrr.
Wilhelmsen blew a heater by Ka'aihue for a foul back, and then on 1-2 another sickening curve into the dirt drew the garbage swing.
.......
Blinkin' tough enough to beat a major league team. How you do it when three of your pitcher's counts are swapped out for hitter's counts, I got no clue.
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=== Dr's R/X ===
Wilhelmsen buried the A's with first-pitch curve balls, putting them in pitcher's counts, so that's good. Still, he threw 12 pitches and he threw every one of them intending a clear strike. Gotta expand the strike zone once in a while, don'cha?
That's just adjustments, though. Wilhelmsen has a big fastball, a bigger curve, the makeup of Goose Gossage, and the "presentation" of a World Wrestling Federation villain. We'll take a hunnerd of him.
.............
The Mariners' pitching staff has 31 strikeouts and 4 walks. If they continue that, they'll continue their .750 winning clip.
Cheers,
Dr D