Thursday This and That

All the statheads say wins and losses aren't a good measure of a pitcher's effectiveness. I don't necessarily agree with that sentiment 100 percent of the time, but here's a case where it's true:

Cubs right-hander Jeff Samardzija (right) is tied for the National League lead in losses with four, even though he has posted a quality start in three of his first five outings and has a respectable ERA of 3.03. Samardzija has just one victory.

Teammate Travis Wood also has just one win. It isn't his fault. He's gone at least six innings and given up two runs or less in each of his first four starts of the season. He has a 2.08 ERA. Unfortunately for him, the Cubs stink, so his record is just 1-1.

Carlos Villaneuva is in the same boat. His ERA is 1.53. He's gone seven innings or more in each of his first four starts, giving up two runs or less in each outing. His record? 1-0.

So, Samardzija, Wood and Villaneuva have a combined 2.25 ERA in 13 starts, 11 of which have been quality. Alas, their combined record is 3-5. None of them has more than one win.

You know who does lead the Cubs' pitching staff in wins? Well, that would be Carlos Marmol, the guy who is blowing all the games for these starting pitchers. Marmol has a bloated 4.82 ERA and 1.82 WHIP. But hey,  he's 2-1!

Where's the justice in that?

Detroit goes back to Valverde

After his legendary playoff meltdown last year, Jose Valverde is back with the Tigers. He made his 2013 debut Wednesday and earned the save in Detroit's 7-5 win over Kansas City. Believe it or not, he retired the side 1-2-3 in the ninth. Of course, two of the three outs were warning track fly balls, but an out is an out, right?

I still think the bullpen is the Achilles heel for the Tigers. They only resigned Valverde because they weren't happy with Phil Coke or any of their other options in the closer's role. Only time will tell, but I wouldn't be surprised if Valverde is washed up. He's fortunate Detroit is a pretty big ballpark. Some of those long flies he gives up will die on the warning track there.

Mr. Solo Home Run

White Sox fans love to complain about their team hitting nothing but solo home runs, but the South Siders have nothing on Atlanta outfielder Justin Upton.

Upton has been red-hot out of the gate this year, connecting for 11 home runs in his first 21 games. Thing is, he has only 16 RBIs.

Upton is just the second player since 1921 to hit 11 home runs and have fewer than 17 RBIs to show for it. The other is Gary Sheffield from the 1996 Florida Marlins.

Isn't anyone getting on base for Upton?  

White Sox starting pitchers should stage a walkout

Following Monday night's preposterous 3-2 loss to the Cleveland Indians, the White Sox find themselves in last place in the American League Central with a 7-12 record. They have lost 10 of their last 13 games.

However, you can't blame the starting pitchers for this tailspin. The rotation of Chris Sale, Jake Peavy, Gavin Floyd, Jose Quintana (pictured) and Dylan Axelrod has been holding up its end of the bargain.

Here is a rundown of how Sox starting pitchers have performed over the last 10 games:

April 12 at Cleveland:
Quintana: 7 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 7 Ks, ND in a 1-0 loss.

April 13 at Cleveland (only really bad start in the bunch):
Sale: 4.1 IP,  8 H, 8 ER, 2 BB, 3Ks, L in a 9-4 loss.

April 14 at Cleveland:
Peavy: 7 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 11 Ks, W in a 3-1 win.

April 15 at Toronto:
Floyd: 4.1 IP, 9 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 6Ks, L in a 4-3 loss.

April 16 at Toronto:
Axelrod: 6 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4Ks, ND in a 4-3 win.

April 17 at Toronto:
Quintana: 6.2 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 7Ks, W in a 7-0 win.

April 18 at Toronto:
Sale: 7 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 6Ks, L in a 3-1 loss.

April 20 vs. Minnesota:
Peavy: 7 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 4 BB, 9Ks, ND in a 2-1 loss

April 21 vs. Minnesota:
Floyd: 6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 6Ks, ND in a 5-3 loss

April 22 vs. Cleveland:
Axelrod: 6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4Ks, ND in a 3-2 loss.

Notice that Sox starting pitchers have gone at least six innings and given up two runs or less in each of the last six games. Isn't that exactly what you want from your rotation? Yet the team is just 2-4 in that same stretch. Sox starters have given up just one single run in each of the last three games. The team has lost them all.

Here are the pitching totals for Sox starters over the last 10 games:
61.1 IP, 51 H, 20 ER, 18 BB, 63 Ks.

That will pencil out to a 2.93 ERA. If you take out Sale's bad outing on April 13, that combined ERA lowers to 1.89.

This is the kind of starting pitching that normally allows teams to get off to a good start. At worst, AT WORST, the Sox should be 6-4 in these 10 games. They probably should be 7-3 or 8-2. Instead, they are 3-7 because the position players have been so terrible, both at the plate and in the field.

I don't think anyone would blame the Sox starters if they walked into the clubhouse and gave all their teammates the silent treatment.  It makes you sick to your stomach to see all this good pitching go to waste.

 

Phil Humber .... one year later

The date was April 21, 2012 -- one year ago today. Phil Humber was at the bottom of this dog pile after tossing the 21st perfect game in MLB history, a 4-0 whitewashing of the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field.

It was a cool story at the time. Humber had pitched in parts of seven major league seasons with four different organizations, yet the perfect game was just the 12th win of his career.

He was a former first-round draft pick who had been a bust. He had been traded and released multiple times. He was about the last guy you'd ever expect to throw a perfect game. He was an underdog, and that was part of what made it so much fun to see him succeed.

Unfortunately for Humber, success has been hard to come by ever since that day in Seattle. He won only four more times for the White Sox after the perfect game. He pitched himself out of the rotation, and ultimately, out of Chicago. He finished 2012 with a 5-5 record and an inflated 6.44 ERA.

The Houston Astros, the worst team in baseball last year and quite possibly the worst again this year, picked Humber up and gave him another shot. The results have not been good. Humber has lost his first four starts of the season. Once again, the ERA is up there at 6.63 ERA.

Humber got the start for Houston against the Cleveland Indians on Saturday, almost one year to the day since his perfect game. He didn't even make it out of the first inning. He faced 10 batters and retired only one. He gave up eight runs on eight hits as the Indians rolled to a 19-6 victory.

What a difference a year makes, huh?

Worst contract: Alfonso Soriano or Adam Dunn?

It only took 14 games. For those of you who had April 18 in the betting pool on when Alfonso Soriano would collect his first RBI of the season, congratulations, you win.

Soriano's home run off Texas right-hander Alexi Ogando in the bottom of the third inning of Thursday's 6-2 Cubs win was the first contribution the erstwhile left fielder has made to the North Siders' cause this year.

But don't worry. I'm sure Soriano will heat up once the Cubs are 15 or 20 games out of first place. He'll get his numbers in garbage time. He always does. For his minimal contributions to the team, he will be paid a handsome salary of $18 million this year. He'll be paid that same amount next year as well.

For all you Cub fans out there, you've only got another 310 games to put up with Soriano's crap. By then, you will have done your penance.

As much as I love making fun of Soriano and his absurd contract, I can't say that contract is any worse than the one the White Sox gave Adam Dunn.

Dunn is off to yet another terrible start here in 2013. He's batting .105 with two home runs and five RBIs through the first 16 games of the season. Anyone actually think he'll get above the Mendoza Line this year? My guess is no.

The Sox just completed a miserable 3-7 road trip through Washington, Cleveland and Toronto. During those 10 games, Dunn went 1-for-33 with two walks, two RBIs and two runs scored. When you think about it, it's a miracle he managed to muster up the two RBIs and two runs scored. I was surprised to learn he struck out only 11 times in 35 plate appearances on the trip. Just watching him, it felt like more than that.

In two years plus 16 games as a member of the Sox, Dunn is batting .180 with a .683 OPS. For his career, he's batting .239 with an .865 OPS. It's pretty clear something happened to this guy as soon as he put on a Sox uniform. He has sucked ever since. I can't put my finger on it, but I do know the South Siders would be better off if Dunn were playing somewhere else.

For his horrendous play, Dunn will be paid $15 million this year. He's making $15 million next year, too, which means there is no chance Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf will allow Dunn to be released. Uncle Jerry always wants to try to get a return on his investment. That's just the way he is. 

So, my fellow Sox fans, that means we've got another 308 games of Adam Dunn before we are relieved of watching this mess. Man, I'm excited.

All I can really tell you about these two players is this: Soriano looks like a frog. Dunn looks like a donkey. And neither of these players can be traded unless their respective clubs are willing to eat all or most of those salaries.

Which contract is worse? I suspect we could have a pretty healthy debate on that topic.

Tigers, Mariners challenge MLB single-game strikeout record

As I was driving home from work in a torrential rainstorm Wednesday night, I was able to catch the final innings of an epic game between the Detroit Tigers and the Seattle Mariners on the radio.

The Tigers prevailed 2-1 in 14 innings. Detroit scratched across a run in the top of the 14 and held on, literally, in the bottom half of the inning. The final out of the game was recorded at home plate, with Detroit catcher Brayan Pena holding on to a relay throw and making a tag as Seattle first baseman Justin Smoak knocked him over.

I was hoping the game would be tied again -- not just because it would have helped the White Sox if Detroit had lost. The two teams were getting close to setting a new record for most combined strikeouts in a single game. Had the game continued, it would have been a chance to see (or hear) a little bit of history.

The two starting pitchers, Seattle's Felix Hernandez (pictured) and Detroit's Max Scherzer, had remarkably similar pitching lines. Both men went eight innings, allowing one run. Both struck out 12. Scherzer threw 105 pitches, 75 for strikes. Hernandez totaled 106 pitches, 76 for strikes.

When all was said and done, the two teams combined for 40 strikeouts -- 21 by Detroit batters and 19 for Seattle. That 21 figure tied team records for both teams -- most strikeouts for Tiger hitters in a single game and most strikeouts for Mariner pitchers in a single game.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, forty combined strikeouts in one game ties for the second most in the Live Ball Era -- which began in 1920. For those wondering, the record is 43, set during a 20-inning game between the Oakland A's and California Angels on July 9, 1971.

Too bad this Detroit-Seattle contest didn't go to a 15th inning. There's a good chance that record would have fallen.

A problem White Sox pitchers must fix

Dayan Viciedo's go-ahead double in the top of the ninth inning highlighted a two-run rally that lifted the White Sox to a 4-3 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays Tuesday night.

Even with the win, the Sox are only 2-6 on their current 10-game road trip. That record is indicative of their play. It hasn't been good, and much of the focus has been on the team's offensive woes. The Sox are hitting .160 with runners in scoring position through 14 games.

We'll save that topic for another time because I want to talk about something else: The tendency of the Sox pitching staff to allow runs immediately after the offense scores. If you look at the six losses on the road trip, in five of those games Sox pitchers have received run support, only to hand it right back to the opposition:

April 9 at Washington:  With the Sox trailing 6-2 in the seventh inning, Paul Konerko belts a three-run home run to get the South Siders right back in the game. A glimmer of  hope? Nah. Donnie Veal's errant pickoff throw gives the Nationals a gift run in the bottom half of the inning, and Washington goes on to win 8-7.

April 10 at Washington: The Sox score a run in the top of the sixth to pull with a run of Washington at 3-2. Can Gavin Floyd (pictured) get his team back in the batters box quickly? Of course not. Floyd coughs up two more runs and gets knocked out of the game as the Sox lose 5-2.

April 11 at Washington: A two-run outburst in the top of the fourth inning pulls the Sox even at 3-3, but much like Floyd before him, Dylan Axelrod cannot stand prosperity. The right-hander immediately surrenders three runs and does not survive the bottom half of the inning. The Nationals prevail 7-4.

April 13 at Cleveland: The Sox get off to a good start with two runs in the top of the first inning. Heck, Chris Sale even retires the first two batters in the bottom half of the frame. Then, he issues a two-out walk to Ryan "The Bambino" Rayburn and gives up a two-run jack to the obnoxious Nick Swisher. That lead didn't last long. Sale gets shelled and the Sox lose 9-4.

April 15 at Toronto:  You gotta love Floyd, and trust me, I say that tongue planted firmly in cheek. The Sox jumped on their old friend Mark Buehrle for two runs in the top of the first inning. It took Floyd exactly three batters to blow that lead. Buehrle and the Jays eventually walked away with a 4-3 win.

Whenever a team goes on a losing streak, there are always multiple things you can point to as the cause of the problem. Right now, it's like pulling teeth for the Sox to score runs. When they do dent home plate, it's damn deflating when the other team gets those runs right back. It's happened again and again over the last week. Given that, it isn't surprising the results haven't been there for the Sox on this trip.

Jake Peavy acts as stopper for White Sox

Ever since Jake Peavy was acquired by the White Sox in 2009, I've never felt he's gotten a fair shake from the fans.

He was injured at the time the San Diego Padres traded him to Chicago. He wasn't able to pitch, and therefore he wasn't earning the hefty contract that followed him to the White Sox.

So, the fans got pissed at him. He made 17 mostly mediocre starts in 2010 before suffering a detached lat. He underwent a surgery no pitcher had undergone before. He returned to make another 19 mostly mediocre starts in 2011, finishing 7-7 with a 4.92 ERA.

Where was the Peavy that won the Cy Young Award as a member of the Padres in 2007? Well, that was a career year for Peavy, one he will probably never duplicate. However, that doesn't mean the guy can't pitch anymore.

In 2011, expectations for Peavy were simply too high. He was coming off a never-been-tried before surgery, and it's always been my belief that pitchers never regain their form the year after they've gone under the knife. It's usually the second year back when a pitcher finds his stuff.

That was the case for Peavy in 2012. His record was only 11-12 because he got lousy run support, but his peripheral numbers were right where you would want them to be: a 3.37 ERA, a staff-high 219 innings pitched, a 1.096 WHIP, 8.0 strikeouts per nine innings pitched.

You look at the numbers and you'll see that Peavy was right in line with his career norms in 2012. He had an excellent season. He earned his money. The Sox rewarded him with a two-year contract and rightfully so.

Yet you still heard Sox fans saying, "Peavy needs to shut up and pitch." Yes, Peavy talks a big game in the media. So what? He's a confident guy. He can say what he wants, and contrary to popular belief, throughout last season he was backing up his talk. His production met expectations and maybe even exceeded them.

Peavy is off to a decent start again here in 2013. He has won two of his first three starts, including Sunday's 3-1 victory in Cleveland. He gave up a home run to Michael Bourn on his first pitch of the game, but after that, the Indians had little chance to score. Peavy found his command in the second inning and never lost it. He struck out 11 men over seven innings and was the key factor in the Sox ending a five-game losing streak.

Among the Sox starters, Peavy is the guy I'm most confident in at this point in time. I feel there's a lot of predictability in what he's going to give the Sox. Hopefully I'm not jinxing him by saying that. The injury bug is always a threat, but it's a threat for every pitcher in professional baseball.

I don't know that Sox fans will ever embrace Peavy because he got off to such a rocky start his first couple years in Chicago. But over the last year plus three starts, he's been as reliable as any player on the South Side roster. I give him full credit for that.