Returning to the Fold (Part II)

A continuing look at the pitchers featured in Part I.

Rich Harden:
Current Stats: 20 IP, 0.95 WHIP, .191 BAA, 1.35 ERA

On April 15^th, after pitching 6 shutout innings against the Yankees, Harden called for the trainer in the top of the 7^th. He took a few practice pitches and then said he was ok to continue. He proceeded to give up a double to A-Rod and then asked out of the game with shoulder tightness. His quote after the game: “It's not too serious, I'm not concerned.” After 2 weeks of scratched throwing sessions, he visited Dr. Lewis Yocum and was advised to rest for 10 days. On May 12^th, he threw for the first time since the injury and “felt great.” On May 19^th, his shoulder “didn’t feel right” while throwing in the outfield and was shut down again. He finally got back on a mound on June 12^th, then an inning rehab assignment June 20^th, and a scoreless inning for the Mets out of the bullpen on June 22^nd, more than two months after the original injury. It will probably be July 15^th at least until he starts another game, 3 months of injury time for something he originally felt was not too serious.

Project Harden consisted of an effort to combine Nolan Ryan’s fastball, Trevor Hoffman’s changeup, and Roger Clemens’ splitter, but Billy Beane’s henchmen are now kicking themselves for putting it on all Nomar Garciaparra’s body.

Zack Greinke:
Current Stats: 59 2/3 IP, 1.54 WHIP, .312 BAA, 5.13 ERA

Not exactly what was planned for this season, as Greinke has been relegated to the bullpen until further notice. He’s had good success relieving: 23 2/3 IP, 6 BB, 27 K, but it still seems like a long road ahead towards being a consistent starter. The best thing might be a move to another team who will give him the innings.

Josh Beckett:
Current Stats: 83 IP, 1.07 WHIP, .224 BAA, 3.14 ERA

That’s more like it! The Red Sox are getting exactly what they traded for now. It was only a matter of time.

Ben Sheets:
Current Stats: 96 IP, 1.17 WHIP, .246 BAA, 3.19 ERA

Sheets is back this year, and finally has a winning team to lead. His stats are solid as a rock and he might just get some Cy Young award votes this year if the Jake Peavy train ever slows down.

Tim Hudson:
Current Stats: 105 IP, 1.15 WHIP, .242 BAA, 3.43 ERA

Ok so numbers do lie sometimes. Huddy’s been brutal the last month or so and is now complaining of shoulder soreness. We’re going on year 3 now that he’s had injury problems, and he’s not getting any younger, so his days as an elite pitcher may be behind him. He should be effective the rest of the year even at 90%, but the Braves probably need more than that to be a playoff threat.

Jake Peavy:
Current Stats: 100 IP, 1.02 WHIP, .204 BAA, 1.98 ERA

Oh my! He’s a healthy version of Rich Harden! I consider Peavy the crown jewel of baseball pitchers right now, especially since he’s only 25. Think about the Jake Peavy for Mike Lowell trade rumors from last winter and how ridiculous they were. Who knows how long Peavy can stay on top of the baseball world with that violent delivery of his, but for now it looks like he’s arrived.

Felix Hernandez:
Current Stats: 63 IP, 1.46 WHIP, .292 BAA, 4.00 ERA.

Some pitchers make it look easy when they are rolling. King Felix makes it look completely effortless. I’d say the jury’s still out on this year since he has said that he didn’t feel healthy after coming off the DL until his last start (8 shutout innings against the Pirates). He’s not missing much in his arsenal, but it does seem like his control in the strike zone is still developing. If it is, then it’s probably because he was able to get away with throwing pitches right down the middle for most of his minor league career. He’s still as likely as anyone in baseball to go on a crazy pitching run of dominance. As of this moment, he’s just over 21 years old and has 321 K’s in 338 major league innings. He’s not making the immediate impact that Dwight Gooden did, but Gooden had chosen cocaine over baseball by age 24, so hopefully the early/middle part of his career will go much better for Hernandez.

Just a reminder of why he’s named King, his career minor league stats:
306 IP, 246 H, 363 K, pitching against guys 3-4 years older than him at every level.