By The Jersey Hitman
League 6
League 17
I was looking at player stats since the All-Star break today, and a few things stood out for me. Like the fact that CC Sabathia doesn’t have the lowest ERA since the break - I thought for sure he did. I bet you don’t know who does?
And with the Rays’ Carl Crawford and Evan Longoria having injury problems, I thought for sure I knew who would be picking things up. But, after looking a bit closer, I’m not so sure anymore.
Which young, over-hyped pitcher has been a huge disappointment this season? That one’s a little easier.
The Good: Randy Johnson
Randy Johnson has surprised me this season … to say the least. In fact, in this column back on February 16th, I wrote an entire article telling you to stay away from all pitchers over the age of 40. I listed Johnson in the “Ugly” category and wrote: “What I see coming this season may be worse than ugly; it might be sad. He should just retire and wait for Cooperstown to call.”
Whoops! My bad. Johnson has been good this season. He is 10-8 with a 4.18 ERA and 121 Ks. The amazing thing is that he’s getting better as the season goes on.
Johnson will turn 45 on September 10th. You would think he could be wearing down in the second half of the season, but not Randy. In his five starts since the All-Star break, he is 4-1 with 26 Ks, a WHIP under 1.00, and an MLB leading 1.08 ERA!
The Big Unit now has 294 career wins. Can he get six more this season? I don’t know, but what’s the rush? There’s always next year. After all, only a fool would suggest he retire.
The Bad: BJ Upton
The Tampa Bay Rays are having a remarkable season, sitting in first place in the AL East in the middle of August with a 71-47 record. But, injuries to Carl Crawford and Evan Longoria have to make Rays fans a bit nervous right now.
This would be the perfect time for BJ Upton to pick up the pace and turn things up a notch. While it has been a good season for his team, it has been a disappointing season, in some ways, for Upton and his fantasy owners. Hitting just .265, with only 7 HRs, and 53 RBIs, his 36 SBs have been the lone bright spot, statistically, for him.
Since the All-Star break, he has been awful, hitting just .222 with 1 HR, 9 RBIs and just 3 SBs. To top things off, he was benched last Wednesday for not running out a ground ball. At a time when his team needs him most, Upton has yet to show up.
The pressure is on the young Rays now. Can they hold on and win the East? Can they even win the AL Wild Card spot? BJ Upton may very well be the key to whether or not the Rays hold on.
The Ugly: Clay Buchholz
Before the season even started, everyone was wondering what round Clay Buchholz should be drafted in. In most leagues he went before Randy Johnson. Now, with less than two months left in the season, you can find him listed amongst the free agents in most leagues.
So what went wrong? He is still very young; in fact, he is 21 years younger than Johnson, having just turned 24 Thursday. Still, no one expected a 2-8 record with a 6.32 ERA at this point.
Since the All-Star break, he is 0-4 with a 7.46 ERA and looks completely lost on the mound at times. Last season’s no-hitter seems to have happened to a different pitcher. That guy was unhittable, confident and had great command of his pitches. This guy is the exact opposite.
Buchholz may very well go on to have a great career in baseball. What is happening to him right now may just be a bump in the road on his way to stardom. But, it is hard to watch him get hit so hard every time he goes out there. Mentally, this has to be wearing on him.
One has to wonder what the Red Sox do with him if they make the playoffs. Will they put him on their roster and let him sit in the bullpen … only to be used for mop up duty? Or just leave him off their roster completely? Either way, his confidence is shaken.