Add new comment

...Fister will run consistently low BABIPs...and if the Mariners keep fielding this well behind him, he could be lower than Radke was as long as the defense remains this solid.  So the correction will not be all that severe in BABIP terms.  I also expect hitters will start swinging at more strikes and that the common approach is going to be to swing at the first pitch against him a LOT...I remember the 90s Mariners doing that with Radke when he was coming up...attacking the first pitch a lot because they knew he'd be around the plate.  The result will be a high HR rate, a very low walk rate (even lower than it is now) and a temporary drop in K rate until he adjusts and throws his plus plus change-up more often on the first pitch.  How fast he adjusts will determine how fast he gels into a top 15 starter in the AL...and yes, i believe it's only a matter of time until that is true.
Doug Fister is the Real Deal...if the Mariners do not keep him in the rotation, I will be very upset.