Bullpen Lights Out Last 13 Games

[CaliSoxFanViaSWside]

Blow it up and serve it in spaghetti sauce.

You guys act like the pen should have 0 ERA and WHIP. Breaking news pitchers give up runs.

[elrockinMT]

You guys act like the pen should have 0 ERA and WHIP. Breaking news pitchers give up runs.

 

 

This is correct. The real test is how they rebound from an occassional failure

[caulfield12]

This is correct. The real test is how they rebound from an occassional failure

 

 

What does "occasional" mean in your definition?

 

The best Twins teams in the last decade lost between 0-3 games all season when leading going into the 8th inning.

[LittleHurt05]

What does "occasional" mean in your definition?

 

The best Twins teams in the last decade lost between 0-3 games all season when leading going into the 8th inning.

 

So you are saying we should trade for LaTroy Hawkins and sign Eddie Guardado?

[caulfield12]

COMFORTING NEWS FOR ALL

 

 

[i]Thornton confident in decisive pitch selection

 

CHICAGO -- After taking the loss Saturday night against Oakland, Matt Thornton went back and studied the pitch he made to Jonny Gomes that resulted in the game-tying, eighth-inning home run. The southpaw still believed Sunday that starting Gomes with a slider was the right call.

 

"Our scouting report said, 'First-pitch breaking ball, outside. Strike 1 every time,'" Thornton said. "My thought was that maybe I'd hung the pitch a little bit. I went back and watched it and talked to [catcher] Tyler [Flowers] and he said that he was going to catch it at the knees. It was going to be the right pitch.

 

"It caught me off guard he even swung, but that's the way it is. It's the game of baseball. He hit a line drive and it got out."

 

Thornton, who entered Sunday's series finale with a 3.88 ERA, admitted that Saturday's loss was a bit mind-boggling but he had moved on and was ready for what's next. The left-hander hopes a few more wins are on his horizon, carrying a 4-8 record through 54 appearances.

 

"As a reliever, I've got a lot of decisions," Thornton said. "Unfortunately, eight of those are losses. But when you give up even one run in a game that's tied, that's the difference-maker.

 

"Frustrating, at times? Yes, but at the same time, I feel like I've come out and continued to attack hitters, continued to make pitches. And you live with results when you throw strikes and prepare yourself every single day and are making the right pitches in certain situations."[/i]

www.chisox.com (Merkin)

[Dick Allen]

COMFORTING NEWS FOR ALL

 

 

[i]Thornton confident in decisive pitch selection

 

CHICAGO -- After taking the loss Saturday night against Oakland, Matt Thornton went back and studied the pitch he made to Jonny Gomes that resulted in the game-tying, eighth-inning home run. The southpaw still believed Sunday that starting Gomes with a slider was the right call.

 

"Our scouting report said, 'First-pitch breaking ball, outside. Strike 1 every time,'" Thornton said. "My thought was that maybe I'd hung the pitch a little bit. I went back and watched it and talked to [catcher] Tyler [Flowers] and he said that he was going to catch it at the knees. It was going to be the right pitch.

 

"It caught me off guard he even swung, but that's the way it is. It's the game of baseball. He hit a line drive and it got out."

 

Thornton, who entered Sunday's series finale with a 3.88 ERA, admitted that Saturday's loss was a bit mind-boggling but he had moved on and was ready for what's next. The left-hander hopes a few more wins are on his horizon, carrying a 4-8 record through 54 appearances.

 

"As a reliever, I've got a lot of decisions," Thornton said. "Unfortunately, eight of those are losses. But when you give up even one run in a game that's tied, that's the difference-maker.

 

"Frustrating, at times? Yes, but at the same time, I feel like I've come out and continued to attack hitters, continued to make pitches. And you live with results when you throw strikes and prepare yourself every single day and are making the right pitches in certain situations."[/i]

www.chisox.com (Merkin)

I suppose he should dwell on it, contemplate suicide or some other silly thing. The fact is Thornton has been pretty good lately. He did give up the homer to tie it last night, but then gave up a couple of pretty cheap hits. He left with the game tied and everyone's favorite wife beater came in and gave up the hit to give up the go ahead run and another insurance run in the 9th. I'm pretty sure if Meyers had Thornton's outing and Thornton came on to relief Myers and did exactly what Meyers did last night, you and a good portion of Soxtalk would have blamed the game on Thornton as well. Its good the Sox are getting him some help. Pitching in what seems every game is going to wear on every pitcher.

Edited August 12, 2012 by Dick Allen

[caulfield12]

I suppose he should dwell on it, contemplate suicide or some other silly thing. The fact is Thornton has been pretty good lately. He did give up the homer to tie it last night, but then gave up a couple of pretty cheap hits. He left with the game tied and everyone's favorite wife beater came in and gave up the hit to give up the go ahead run and another insurance run in the 9th. I'm pretty sure if Meyers had Thornton's outing and Thornton came on to relief Myers and did exactly what Meyers did last night, you and a good portion of Soxtalk would have blamed the game on Thornton as well. Its good the Sox are getting him some help. Pitching in what seems every game is going to wear on every pitcher.

 

 

Now your argument is that Myers theoretically would have lost the game, had he entered where Thornton did?

 

Just wow.

 

And way to throw Myers' domestic violence conviction into it as well, that's probably what caused AJ to throw the ball down the line against the Twins...or maybe it was because there was a baserunner in the way, but it might have been because AJ has a non-profit foundation set up to protect women from DV and he was deliberately sabotaging Myers???

 

All evidence to the overall success level of Myers with the Sox, especially against RHBers...we'll just conveniently throw that out.

 

Fathom quoted the overwhelmingly convincing and weighted stats for those A's batters against RHP and LHP in the game thread. Patently obvious that Thornton wasn't the correct move from the very beginning, and shouldn't have been left in to face ANY righties.

 

Thornton's fastball velocity was already down before this season...it's not due to his workload in 2012. It has been consistently declining inch by inch over the last couple of seasons.

 

BTW, Thornton gives up a couple of cheap hits every other time he comes into a game. That's why he has given up more hits than IP. That's BAD if you're a short reliever...and it's a sign his fastball that used to get swings and misses just isn't blowing very many batters away anymore, at least not in key situations against teams like the Red Sox or A's.

[Kyyle23]

What does "occasional" mean in your definition?

 

The best Twins teams in the last decade lost between 0-3 games all season when leading going into the 8th inning.

 

how did they do in the playoffs?

[Balta1701]

Thornton's fastball velocity was already down before this season...it's not due to his workload in 2012. It has been consistently declining inch by inch over the last couple of seasons.

2007: 95.7

2008: 95.3

2009: 95.7

2010: 96.1

2011: 95.8

2012: 95.2

 

Pitch F/X #'s.

[Dick Allen]

Now your argument is that Myers theoretically would have lost the game, had he entered where Thornton did?

 

Just wow.

 

And way to throw Myers' domestic violence conviction into it as well, that's probably what caused AJ to throw the ball down the line against the Twins...or maybe it was because there was a baserunner in the way, but it might have been because AJ has a non-profit foundation set up to protect women from DV and he was deliberately sabotaging Myers???

 

All evidence to the overall success level of Myers with the Sox, especially against RHBers...we'll just conveniently throw that out.

 

Fathom quoted the overwhelmingly convincing and weighted stats for those A's batters against RHP and LHP in the game thread. Patently obvious that Thornton wasn't the correct move from the very beginning, and shouldn't have been left in to face ANY righties.

 

Thornton's fastball velocity was already down before this season...it's not due to his workload in 2012. It has been consistently declining inch by inch over the last couple of seasons.

 

BTW, Thornton gives up a couple of cheap hits every other time he comes into a game. That's why he has given up more hits than IP. That's BAD if you're a short reliever...and it's a sign his fastball that used to get swings and misses just isn't blowing very many batters away anymore, at least not in key situations against teams like the Red Sox or A's.

No, that's not what I wrote.

My point was you and a few others would blame the game on Thornton no matter what happened. Thornton was blamed, the wife beater got a pass. It would have been the same had the wife beater come in first and performed exactly as Matt did and Thornton relieved him and performed exactly as Meyers did. No matter what, Thornton's fault. He got a ground ball to SS that was in between hops that Ramirez had to go back on and it was too late to get Cespedes. Then Cepsedes runs and Carter hits a pop up to 2nd but because Beckham was covering 2nd on a steal attempt, the ball is a hit. Thornton then leaves the game with the game tied. Meyers, who, historically, gives up more than a hit an inning, an indication to you he can't be any good, gives up a hit for the lead, and for good measure gives up an insurance run in the ninth.

 

 

Thornton doesn't "miss enough bats" you say over and over. His k rate is down this year. Its 7.8 per 9 innings. Meyers career k rate is 7.3 and hasn't been as high as Thornton's 7.8 this season since 2008.

[fathom]

Ugh