It's ironic that a team that has relied so heavily on the youth movement and home-grown talent would suddenly become allergic to rookies. After surprising rookie reliever Jared Hughes and his 48 appearances, the next highest total of any Pirates rookie this season is 30. That mark belongs to the long-forgotten Matt Hague. Sure the rookie position players haven't exactly inspired much confidence. The Bucs just haven't gotten much production out of the likes of Hague, Yamaico Navarro and Gorkys Hernandez. Still, Starling Marte showed real potential before landing on the DL. Plus, AAA is stocked with a bevy of arms ready to contribute at the Big League level.
Pitchers Jeff Locke, Justin Wilson and Kyle McPherson all had impressive, albeit brief, debuts, but they've been relegated mostly to fill-in duty for a game or two at a time. Indianapolis reliever Bryan Morris was called up for a day and didn't even get a sniff of game action. Instead, those major league bullpen spots have been filled by veteran journeymen like Juan Cruz and Chad Qualls. Likewise, the starting rotation has been clogged by Kevin Correia, Wandy Rodriguez and the recently-released Erik Bedard.
But Bedard's release presents a new opportunity to let the youth movement continue. As the veterans fade down the stretch, the opportunity is there for the Pirates to fill Bedard's spot with one of the more exciting AAA options. Wouldn't the rotation look better with a young lefty with hit-and-miss stuff like Jeff Locke than with another stretch of mediocrity by Correia. At the very least, call up Bryan Morris and let him fill a Brad Lincoln-type role if you're dead-set on putting Correia back in the rotation. It's time for this front office to stop thinking veterans are necessarily the solution when there are young, talented arms ready to contribute at Indy. Nothing against Hisanori Takahashi, but couldn't that bullpen role be filled just as easily with Justin Wilson? Their current strategy has them on the outside of the playoff race looking in. There's not much more to lose and a great deal to gain by seeing what kind of spark some of these young arms could provide.
Showing posts with label Erik Bedard. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Erik Bedard. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
How should Pirates fans feel about Erik Bedard?
Last night, Erik Bedard was brilliant for the Pirates, giving up only two hits in seven scoreless frames while striking out five and walking none. In fact, since the All-Star break, Bedard has been mostly stellar, posting 3 quality starts in four chances and averaging only a run per game over those outings. His other outing was one to forget, though. On July 30, he gave up nine runs (eight earned) in 4.1 innings on the road against the Cubs.
That's been the pattern for Bedard most of the year: solid for awhile and then some really rough patches. He started off the year strong, but stumbled badly from mid-May to early-July. Given his injury history, many folks feared the worst. And then came this stretch of mostly terrific work. Even in the blowout in Chicago, he looked sharp at times, striking out seven batters in his shortened start. So, what are Pirates fans to make of Bedard? Can he be counted on down the stretch?
Well, let's look at the numbers. On the surface, they're not great. He's got a 6-12 record with a 4.83 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. I'm always surprised when I see those numbers, though, because I feel that he's pitched better than that this season. That's where advanced metrics fit in. Despite his bloated ERA, he has a much better xFIP of 4.06. He also has a healthy 8.63 K rate, which is right around his career average. His walk rate is a bit high, but overall, he has a decent 1.3 season WAR.
Most importantly, Bedard passes the eye test. He keeps hitters off balance, he knows when and how to pitch inside, and there's great life on his curve. Assuming he can stay healthy, he'll be a valuable pitcher for the Pirates down the stretch. Last year, Bedard reached 20 starts and 100 innings for the first time since he was an Oriole back in 2007. He's done it again this year and there's reason to believe he's finally moved past the debilitating injuries that derailed his promising career. Bedard has been no picture of health of late, but if I were a betting man, I'd lay my money down.
That's been the pattern for Bedard most of the year: solid for awhile and then some really rough patches. He started off the year strong, but stumbled badly from mid-May to early-July. Given his injury history, many folks feared the worst. And then came this stretch of mostly terrific work. Even in the blowout in Chicago, he looked sharp at times, striking out seven batters in his shortened start. So, what are Pirates fans to make of Bedard? Can he be counted on down the stretch?
Well, let's look at the numbers. On the surface, they're not great. He's got a 6-12 record with a 4.83 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. I'm always surprised when I see those numbers, though, because I feel that he's pitched better than that this season. That's where advanced metrics fit in. Despite his bloated ERA, he has a much better xFIP of 4.06. He also has a healthy 8.63 K rate, which is right around his career average. His walk rate is a bit high, but overall, he has a decent 1.3 season WAR.
Most importantly, Bedard passes the eye test. He keeps hitters off balance, he knows when and how to pitch inside, and there's great life on his curve. Assuming he can stay healthy, he'll be a valuable pitcher for the Pirates down the stretch. Last year, Bedard reached 20 starts and 100 innings for the first time since he was an Oriole back in 2007. He's done it again this year and there's reason to believe he's finally moved past the debilitating injuries that derailed his promising career. Bedard has been no picture of health of late, but if I were a betting man, I'd lay my money down.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)