Aug
05
Mitre says he’s worked out the kinks
ByWhen a pitcher has a poor start, one of many excuses they offer up is that their mechanics were out of whack. We heard this from Joba Chamberlain earlier in the season — that he was working on his mechanics. Whether it’s true or not we can rarely be sure. Each pitcher has his own set of mechanics, so it’s tough to compare one to another. It looks like Sergio Mitre took this excuse after his poor outing on Friday against the White Sox. Via MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo, we learn that Mitre has worked on his mechanics between starts, “concentrating on keeping his right arm and his body synchronized.” That, he says, will help keep his sinker sinking and away from the upper parts of the zone. We’ll see for sure a bit later tonight.
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Is our depth at starting pitching so weak we have to fall back on a starting pitcher with a career 5.47 ERA in 324.1 innings pitched?
What is the reason for this inferior pitcher to be our 5th starter?
Just searching for some insight.
I’m just curious as to what you expect out of a 5th starter. If you are expecting more than 5 or 6 innings of 4-5 run ball, your expectations are too high. Mitre gave the yankees that his first two starts but it seems people are forgetting that b/c of one bad game.
I am too demanding, it seems.
the panic of putting phil hughes and alfredo aceves in the bullpen. they were our 6th and 7th starters.
that left ian kennedy as the 8th starter. injured.
mitre was signed to be the 9th starter. here he is. number 9.
and number 10 is josh towers/kei igawa/ivan nova
depth dries up and disappears to everyone every year.
Thank you.
Also, Kontos was probably the original #9 guy. Also out due to injury. Chris Garcia was someone who could have come on fast, but he ALSO (unsurprisingly) went down due to injury.
So, there were 5 options better than Mitre. Two are in the pen and three got hurt. Why are those two in the pen? The bullpen veterans we had got hurt.
Can’t ever have too much pitching.
well isn’t that panic justified considering who was in the bullpen the first month/month and a half? Without Aceves and Hughes our bullpen isn’t what it is today.
Well, obviously Aceves would probably be a better SP option than Mitre, but I think he’s best used in the bullpen. Phil Hughes on the other hand….Ugh.
Name me a team with a better fifth starter.
Red Sox!1!! Penny, Smoltz, Buchholz are so good you can pick any as your 3rd, 4th or 5th..
red sox don’t have a fifth starter. they are all aces
ha very good
I would much rather have Andy and Joba as my 3,4. Penny let up more runs then Mitre last night and we shall see how Smoltz and Buchholz fair against a line up like the Yankees have.
If Mitre can’t get it done I think Josh Towers should get the call up over Igawa or Ivan Nova. At least he has had some success in the majors and in the AL East pitching in Toronto and Baltimore. He has always had very good control but low strikeout rates so if he gets hit he doesn’t compound it by walking guys. Nova is not experienced enough to come up in a pennant race and if they need another starter in a trade they should still go for someone cheaper like Brian Bannister.
The point isn’t to put him against other teams back end. The point is to get the best group of 5 you can. Does he make this group better? Obviously not. So you look to improve.
You don’t slot them and compare. Thats not how it works.
I disagree.
exactly.
You would.
He has a career ERA of 5.47, a 1.56 WHIP, 11 H/9, 3.1 BB/9. I don’t think any kid of “mechanical fixes” are going to help this guy. Maybe he’ll get lucky enough to stop the bleeding for a few starts and keep us in the game.
but tommy john makes you a better pitcher!!
really? getting his mechanics back to his season in Florida prior to TJS wouldnt be a 5th starter?
Is being disagreeable a hobby for you?
Anyway, the point is that this was nothing more than propaganda, pretty much.
“Oh, it was my mechanics.” Well his numbers tell a different story. They tell a story of a guy who hasn’t been a very effective pitcher – even for a 5th starter – for his career.
And when he gets back to pitching like he did in those few precious months when he was somewhat average, you go ahead and let me know, mkay?
Oh, and to answer your question…yes, really.
Bah, my Baseball Reference link got stuck in the spam filter.
Anyhoo, he showed signs of being a good pitcher in 2007, then he needed Tommy John surgery (after a bout of suckitude to end his season).
Don’t give me career stats for a pitcher who had TJ surgery at 26. They’re meaningless.
News to me.
We are 2-1 in his starts. I dont care what his ERA is as long as we try and win 2 out of every 3 starts that he makes. The offense knows they will have to pull their weight against the Jays pitcher tonight
Bad thinking. Thinking like that kills the pen when he barely goes 5 every 5th day.
I would just like to see either a veteran with past success or one of our very own young arms to take over the 5th spot.
But, that is not happening due to bullpen problems and injuries unfortunately.
When Joba reaches his innings limit he can move to the bullpen and then a case can be made for Hughes or Aceves to then come out and take over the 5th spot.
If/When Joba comes out, that leaves 2 holes in the rotation so Hughes or Ace can’t be the 5th starters, they’ll be 4th assuming Mitre is still in the rotation.
Whoever takes the 5th starter role isn’t going to be anyone that good because he will be bumped from the rotation as soon as an improvement comes along (e.g., Hughes is moved into the rotation). If a veteran with a good track record is willing to be our 5th starter, then he isn’t a good pitcher anymore.
Let’s hope he has for the good of the Yanks
Is Mitre a hopeful 5th for the rest of the season or are we just plugging him in there waiting for someone else?
I bet Cashman’s furiously scrambling for a better alternative. All his talk about the waiver wire in August wasn’t just blowing smoke. Unless someone unexpected clears waivers all the way through to the Yankees, you’re talking about suspects like Ponson and his ilk.
Why are you asking, basically, the same questions in 10 separate comments?
Yes.
The lineup for tonight
Derek Jeter SS
Johnny Damon LF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez DH
Nick Swisher RF
Robinson Cano 2B
Melky Cabrera CF
Jerry Hairston 3B
Jose Molina C
I’m going to fall in love with Hairston replacing Ransom as our utility ballplayer.
you and i both
hairston has so much range!
Seriously? He’s basically Cody Ransom at the plate (SSS I know but Ransom’s career OPS+ is 88 to Hariston’s 85) and he can play the OF as well. Hairston will probably be a very, very slight upgrade over Ransom, but nothing crazy.
Other difference…he plays GOOD defense. Ransom has been a butcher all season.
True. His IF defense isn’t great (-12.3 UZR/150 @ third, -5.4 @ SS, but 5.5 @ 2B) but his OF defense is nice (overall OF UZR/150 of 19.6).
…
IETC
salty, i didnt do it, i promise
In related news, I’ve changed the angle in which I hold my penis while tinkling. Will I still piss all over the seat?
Probably.
We’ll find out tonight.
A change of speed on your delivery may help your accuracy.
and we have a WINNAR!
Mitre is the only undefeated starter on our team. He must be good.
I’m pretty sure it must have been mentioned by now, but RANSOM IS GONE!! He’s DFA’d!
Maybe he’s been so bad they DFA’d him twice…just to make sure.
note: poochie died on the way back to his home planet
Mitre, 4-hitter. I’m calling it.
In one inning? With three walks and a total of 5 earned runs? Good call.
you beat me to it apparently, by less than a minute
Yup, 4 hits, 8 walks, 4 HBs, and 8 ER’s in one inning is much more likely
It’s a bold strategy, Cotton. Let’s see how it works out for ‘em.
You just jinxed him.
6 innings, 3 runs. Gets real lucky though, allows alot of runners but gets big double plays.
Not with his sinker. What would be DP balls for guys like Lowe, Webb, and Wang (when he’s right, obviously) are balls that are ripped against Mitre. Damn, he’s giving up a 25.5% LD rate. Wow.
Why do we ignore FIP when it comes to Mitre?
If I’m reading this right, he has a 4.02 FIP. Don’t you think he’s hit some bad luck?
I don’t expect him to be 07 CMW here, I expect him to put up lines like his first start with the Yankees. Maybe a little better, maybe a litter worse in his starts.
His tRA is at 5.65, which is good for a tRA+ of 85 (same scale as ERA+). I understand that Mitre doesn’t walk many or give up many home runs but he gives up incredibly hard contact.
Freakin’ Nerds!!!
I have a life, Dexter!!
Just kidding my dude, I gotta learn more about all these stats on Fangraphs. Interesting stuff.
I don’t expect Mitre to be very good but I think some of the hate I see on him here isn’t called for…. yet.
http://statcorner.com/tRAabout.html
If anything, SABR should have Mitre’s stats removed from the records for what it’s doing to FIP.
I bought tickets to a game next week. I realized after I bought them that Mitre is pitching. FML.
They’ll still win.
Is that Monday night? I’m going Monday night. Anyone else going? Mini-RAB meet up?
they might be facing halladay if he’s given an extra day off
oy
I’ve never seen Halladay, so that’ll be a treat of sorts. I’ve seen Pedro, Clemens, Johan, and CC so it’ll be nice to add Halladay to the list of great starters I’ve seen in person.
I saw halladay last night. Boy was it fun to see him lose for once
Ive seen Halladay once in Toronto… He almost no hit the yankees.
Best of luck. I went to a baseball game with AJ Burnett as the starter and the White Sox shot lines drives all over the southside. But, then of course the next day I witnessed a cycle by Melky Cabrera. So, sometimes we are blessed after misfortunes.
Also, in ’07, I went to at least three or four games that Igawa pitched.
I see Mitre as a guy who can pitch to an ERA of around of 5, which would not be horrible for a 5th starter on a team that can score like the Yanks. We still have Hughes and Aceves in the pen, so it is not like it is panic mode with the starting pitching. If/When both of those guys are starting with nobody else behind them, then it will be panic time. Yanks are still in good shape.
Mitre should be the long man/mop up. They will get a better back end starter in here.
Hopefully that back end starter is Phil Hughes.
Who? Since it doesn’t seem like they’ll put hughes or aceves in the 5 spot, what other options are there? I know you won’t reply, but maybe someone else will
From MLB Trade rumors : “The Red Sox made a minor move today, designating infielder Gil Velazquez for assignment. He’ll make room for lefty Billy Traber. Velazquez appeared in six games for Boston earlier this year, going 0 for 2″
I have no clue who Gil Velazquez is, but they’re making a big mistake calling up Billy Traber. That guy really sucked when he was on the yanks
That guy really sucked when he was on
the yanksevery team he’s ever been on.Fixed.
Ha Gil Velazquez is the guy everyone was calling for when Lugo was sucking. ‘Who cares if he hits .150, he can play defense!”
lmao you gotta be pretty crappy when your getting DFA’d for Billy Traber
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