Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Number 3 starter

Just when it seemed like Barry Zito was going to have trouble being the fifth-best pitcher on our squad, he tosses 7 shutout innings in Atlanta. Who is this guy? What do we make of the enigma that is The Second Highest Paid Pitcher in Baseball? Check out the snarky take from RotoWorld--he's due for a fall if recent pattern is a useful predictor. They say it is "almost a guarantee" he'll get hammered in his next start. Is it just random variation that produces these strong Zito efforts? Is he really a 5.40 ERA guy? He was a league-average 4.50 last year, and his lifetime mark is 3.80. I think I'll go beat my head against the wall and see if any insights emerge. I imagine that is just as useful at this point as pitch f/x analysis. Whatever he is, he's our #3 right now, and I have a feeling he'll be our #3 for five more years.

And, just because it feels so good:

Pa-bloooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

3 comments:

Brother Bob said...

"I got caught up with trying to make things happen," he said. "You can't do that. Hitters make things happen."
I swear to some deity, does this guy have to figure out his purpose in life every 5th day? How old is he? How long has he been in the majors?
However, the good starts are starting to occur with greater frequency, so let's just be grateful for that.
Hey, I have a new favorite name:
"Madison Bumgarner"-- They say he's tearing it up in the low A league.

Anonymous said...

Everyone is pretty frustrated with Zito when he loses. And he has looked pretty bad on occasion. Here, however are a couple of numbers: Zito 12-1 as a Giant when he has received at least 4 runs of support; Zito one run or less of support in 24 starts as a Giant.

JC Parsons said...

Excellent post, compadre (mmm, nachos). Me sure wish I could write so goodly. Seriously, I completely agree. I am ready for the rock therapy myself. I always figured it would take a few years before Zito's contract started to look reasonable. If he can hang as our #3 for 5 years that would be good and bad. Good because of the crazy contract but BAD because it means WE SUCK. Alderson and Bob's new fav, Bumgarner (lovingly called Mad Bum in many blogs) are hella better than Beezy and will be up within 5 years easy. Zito is the #3 on the 2011 Giants only if major injuries or trades occur.

Pablooooooooooooooooooo! Dude can hit. What an amazing season this guy is having. He is one BIG fella. I bet he plays a bit of 1B this year, just to see if his hitting is for real. Of course, Travis (Bob's fav yesterday, fickle bastard) looks like a new man at the plate. He says its all about finding God....that scares me, I wish he had a new stance or something...