Javier Vazquez: Braves Ace.
Written by Joe Veno on June 22, 2009 – 6:20 PM -Ok, let us allow him more time.
But Rich Lederer has a nice piece, ranking all pitchers by K/100 pitches. A method that Rich set up, so that pitchers who throw a ton of pitches don’t have an advantage.
For example: Well, Rich explains it better than I…
“Strikeouts. Pitch totals. Putting strikeouts in the numerator and pitch totals in the denominator allows us to measure dominance and efficiency or what I have referred to it as “strikeout proficiency.” As a standalone stat, I believe it tells us more than K/9 or K/BF.”
And the leader is…Javier Vazquez, who if you haven’t heard, has been criticized for years now it seems. His stuff and ability have never translated to the results that should come with a guy, who, well, has that kind of talent.
But this year it’s a different story.
Vazquez is of course leading Rich’s metrical creation. His ERA+ sits at a pretty little 124, which is very close to his 2007 campaign–one in which he was very good, and underrated.
His 112 K’s leads the league. His 18 walks, which is awesome, is fourth in the NL, expressed in BB/9. And he’s matched his career high in Groundball percentage, keeping the ball on the ground about 42% of the time.
According to “Pitch Type Values” it’s his curve doing the most damage. But his change has been nothing short of stellar either.
Vazquez has four quality pitches, and he knows how to use them. Not that he’s been poor in the past, but he has rarely been this good. If he can get that slider going a little better than it has, then he can be even scarier.
The Braves done good getting this guy.
Tags: Atlanta Braves, Javier Vazquez, Rich LedererPosted in Atlanta Braves, Player Analysis | 7 Comments »
June 22nd, 2009 at 7:47 PM
Here’s the problem with Vazquez. Let me preface it by saying I love Vazquez, he’s my boy, I loved the move at the time, I spent all winter trying to convince people Vazquez is going to benefit from the NL, a new manager who isn’t Ozzie Guillen, a much better defense, and a more pitcher-friendly ballpark. People thought I was crazy when I said he’d be in the conversation for the Cy Young. And he’s in that conversation right now. But here’s the problem. And it’s a good problem to have. He throws too many strikes. Pounds the zone. Bam Bam Bam. Good hitting teams, good average hitting teams, ones that are good at making solid contact, will exploit that. Because they know they’re getting something in the zone. But that’s a very good problem to have. The other problem is he’s much worse from the stretch contributing to his astonishingly low career strand rate. But he’s a baller. I love him. My favorite pitcher on our staff. He isn’t afraid of anyone. And he’s really putting it together. If we don’t start winning I think we should trade him for prospects. But if we stay in it, I wouldn’t mind this guy staying around for another 5-6 years.
June 22nd, 2009 at 7:56 PM
I actually thought he would do well this season too.
Would you prefer he pound the zone most of the time but stray away a little more against the better hitters?
June 22nd, 2009 at 8:28 PM
No I’d just prefer him not be so predictable. He does a good job of mixing pitches, changing speeds, and changing the eye level of the hitters, but I’d prefer him occasionally throw a ball after he’s up 0-2. Not necessarily against good hitters. But that’s his M.O. and I don’t see any reason for him to change. As the old saying goes, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. And especially this season, it ain’t broke. I want ever one of our young pitchers to pay very close attention to every start Vazquez makes.
June 22nd, 2009 at 8:52 PM
You see that? He just threw a slider out of the zone to Lee that looked intentional trying to get Lee to chase on an 0-2 count. Then he threw a curve out of the zone. Then what looked like a change. All out of the zone.
June 22nd, 2009 at 8:59 PM
He is not his self today. And I think he just strained his neck. Did you see any of that 12 strikeout game he fired against the Pirates?
June 22nd, 2009 at 9:16 PM
No, I missed that. Would have avoided it because of the opponent anyway.
June 22nd, 2009 at 10:40 PM
FINALLY, we get Vazquez a win. Soriano is disgusting. I feel some ROLAIDS AWARD talk coming on. 32 and 2/3 innings, 45 K’s.