jung

I am not talking about other teams weaknesses nor stating that other teams do not have them. Looking at the actual game stats and the pitchers that pitched those games, the Sox have been dominated more often this year by curve ball/slider = breaking ball pitchers than they by have overpowering FB pitchers who use the Change as a key secondary pitch. You can argue about the rest all you want. That is and was the point. Taking into account ALL Curve balls which means mediocre curve balls says nothing, proves nothing, means nothing. And the comment I made that you quoted above is exactly true, not only based on the actual data but based on a working knowledge of the English language. In fact the comment above is indisputable.

As usual total numbers can be deceiving. Just like the total runs tally is deceiving. The Sox do score a lotta' runs but they do not score them in the traditional wall banging fashion of the Tigers and it does not prevent them from being dominated by certain kinds of pitchers, particularly pitchers the rely on their breaking pitches. The fact that the Sox can hit a breaking ball does not mean much since there are pitchers out there that throw pretty mediocre breaking balls. I am more concerned with the games where they are dominated by pitchers with good breaking balls or games where they are dominated generally. So looking at the shut outs: Johnson April 5th…threw more curves and sliders than FB's and Change ups combined and threw them for a high strike rate, especially curves. Does not even have much of a FB any longer and his change is not a pitch he relies on. Still has a decent Sinker but is no longer a power pitcher. Colon April 23… threw more sinkers than any other pitch. This was a dominating performance from a power pitcher as I consider a pitching performance that included that many Sinkers thrown for strikes to be a power pitching exhibition. Holland May 3…Holland is not the same kind of power pitcher as Colon or Moore but I still consider this a traditional power pitcher showing. Threw mostly FB's and Sinkers with the Change his most important other pitch. That is now one of the hallmarks of starters that are power pitchers. The change is an important pitch for the power pitcher. Tillman June 14….Fairly even mix of pitches, threw 20 Curve balls only half for strikes. Does not have an overpowering FB and does not depend on his Change up Weaver July 7….. Another guy like Fitzer, no longer really even has a FB worth talking about Moore July 22…traditional power pitcher's game was overpowering and again as is the case with the other two power pitchers in this grouping, depends on a good Change Tillman July 26….Fairly even mix of pitches again did not have overpowering stuff and threw 22 Curves with a much higher strike count than July 14. Again did not rely on a Change for anything Oberholtzer, Aug 5….Fairly even mix of pitches…threw more Curves than any other pitch than the FB, threw half of them for strikes and again does not posses an overpowering FB nor depend on his Change. Nolasco, Aug 23….29 sliders, 14 curves, 32 FB's again not overpowering. Threw the breaking balls for a higher strike count than any other pitch. Does not depend on a Change for anything Fitzer today, don't have the count as yet but Fitzer threw a ton of Curves for strikes in many cases leaving the Sox with their bats on their shoulders. I am only concerned here with the kinds of pitching exhibitions that stop the Sox in their tracks. Looking at this year's shut outs, there is a far higher number generated from breaking ball pitchers that neither have overpowering stuff nor rely on a Change for anything than there are from power pitchers with good FB's or Sinkers relying on a Change as their most important secondary pitch. The only three shut out games thrown by power pitchers were the Holland, Moore and Colon games. Colon threw far more Sinkers than FB's but I consider the Sinker a power pitchers pitch especially when thrown with the strike consistency that Colon had. So his game goes into the power pitcher category as does Moores. Moore's shutout was truly a power pitching exhibition and he was overpowering. You could almost argue Holland either way but I am comfortable putting his game in the power pitcher's category The rest are a collection of breaking ball/curve masters, some with hardly a FB that they can throw for a strike without being hurt. All of them threw curves and sliders for high strike counts and none relied on a Change for anything. That makes seven shut outs from curve/slider breaking ball masters all throwing them for high strike counts and only three from traditional power pitchers depending on a Change as an important secondary pitch.

It is not so much that they can't hit curve balls...they can't seem to foul off curve balls. They are stricken paralyzed by them. I just hope the league has not found the real achilles heel of this offense. They are not free swingers but that is the core of their offensive process. They don't seem to have an answer for a pitcher that can throw breaking balls for strikes which is not the same thing as getting hitters to chase breaking balls out of the zone.

What the f***....I know enough not to like to see the Sox face pitchers that can throw curve balls for strikes but has the league finally figured it out? Seen more curves for strikes today than we usually see in a week.

The Fister types have been scarier to me all year with this team...last year as well. Give me a guy for the Sox to hit that is a FB/straight change kind of guy any day over one of these guys.

Ortiz has no choice but to sit heat here and hope he gets it

Time for vic to start to consider going back to switch hitting. This thing may have run its course.

Middle relief tends to be the weak underbelly of the ML team...for us it is a weak, flabby underbelly that is far too easy to slash open leaving our intestines flopping out on the ground. The ability of the hitters to take the ball to either a set up guy and Ueh or straight to Ueh has been a big big deal for us.

Now that really makes it tough. Two was manageable....three could be another story.

WMB got a good pitch to hit for him...did nothing with it unfortunately. That was a big spot. Should have allowed Salty to hit away. Still might have gotten the runners over while making out but I did not believe Salty could lay one down against Fister. Hell a good bunter might have trouble laying one down on Fister.

Out given up for nothing....I understand why the sac bunt attempt there but you could see Salty having a hard time laying one down against Fister. I really would have been tempted to let Salty swing given the circumstances.

Oh God...Nava on second base....

We needed the two outs even giving up the run there. If we can't get three runs off Fister we just can't. Throwing breaking balls for strikes seems to be the way to mow through the Sox lineup if you are going to do it. FB's Nope...not going to happen. Even FB/Change pitchers don't seem to present too many problems for the Sox hitters. But a guy that can throw breaking balls for strikes....watch out.

Not sure I would be wanting to go full bore coming up on the bullpen like that. I would rather hit the full wall than hit that damned bullpen.

Fister's hook has got these guys all f***ed up. I have noticed that lately. Guys with decent curves can really get the sox hitters in a lotta' trouble.

Thank God...I can take Iggy at 1-2. 2-2 would have been intolerably irritating....especially if he scored to boot.

Vic has been the best OF of any of the Sox outfielders this year...not even close.

Fister looks like he has decided to be the first RH pitcher to try to take it to Vic for batting from the right side. Most pitchers he has faced so far have really not attacked him like a guy that should have trouble hitting RH pitching from the right side. Fister is dealing pitches that should make life tough for a guy that really should not be hitting from the right side. Interesting that it has taken this long for somebody to even try it this way. Maybe MLB thought this thing would just end quickly and naturally and really have not planned for Vic to continue to do this.

Lackey is nasty today. The Sox starters with the exception of Dempster who has not been working off the same page as the rest of them (maybe dinging Aroid should not have been that much of a surprise after all) have been just outrageous lately. It is almost like they have gotten into a spoken or unspoken competition to sort out who among them is really the 1 in the absence of the vacationing Buch. Been great to watch.

Iggy with a hit against the Sox...what a shock! (NOT)

Monster thunder boomers in New England last night. Biggest of this year and really of the past several around here. Dogs fighting to pull me down to the floor so that every living thing in the house could huddle. More rolling in now. Not sure if Fenway can miss the ones south of me.

Fuxk...Hate it when Jackson gets on...

I hope Cabrera is back tomorrow especially if we win today's game. Want to see Tigers with all their tools in hand and see what happens. Everybody talking about Iggy not being able to keep it up. I think what he is doing now and has been doing this year is sustainable for him as long as he keeps his legs under him and plays like a man possessed. Interested to see how pumped up he is to play the Sox these next few games. We may see him making plays in RF. I just don't think Iggy is going to give us the opportunity to say we did not give up a really good, possibly great player. We are just going to have to be resigned to the fact that this Sox team really needs very good starting pitching. IMO, the Sox did what they had to do and did it using a guy at peak value that was never going to be fully appreciated here. I just don't think we are going to get much opportunity to scoff at Iggy as a player.

I have no reason to believe the Sox will play differently the next month than they have played all year. Sticking to their knitting has gotten them this far. In fact as long as they keep using the same formula, they are in every game with the exception of the very best games pitched by the very best pitchers in the league. Now that their starting pitching is so good, they are if anything winning at a more impressive rate now than earlier in the season when you consider this is crunch time. We got a good dose of what happens when the starting pitching lets down even a little bit though in those series we were losing soon after the ASB. This formula works for the Sox and would work with either terrific starting pitching or consistently great middle relief. Not sure anybody gets consistently great middle relief. However the starters are really on a roll.

In XB's case it was never a matter of starting every game anyway. If they were going to use him the way they used him from the time he did come up till now, they should have left him where he was until the call ups. It is that simple. You don't take a kid who is still developing and sit him for long stretches with the big club when he could be playing every day at AAA.