|
2008 All of the Marlins' top five starters in 2006 saw their ERAs rise in 2007. Three of the five-Sanchez, Johnson, and Nolasco-went from 63 combined starts to 14. The other two, Olsen and Willis, saw their combined ERA go from 3.94 to 5.47. Now, Billy Martin is dead, so we can't blame him. Joe Girardi, however, is very much alive and seems to have escaped detection by getting himself fired in advance of this carnage. It's facile to say "Girardi broke his pitchers," because pitchers get hurt for all kinds of reasons, but when the aftermath is this dramatic, more questions should be asked. Sanchez, who despite his no-hitter was well over his head as a major leaguer in 2006, was demoted last May and later diagnosed with a torn labrum, the timing of which resulted in a dispute between Sanchez and the team as to whether he should have been placed on the major league DL rather than sent down. He might be ready for spring training, but he's not likely to be at all effective this year. 2007 During his no-hitter in September, Sanchez was still hitting 95 MPH in the ninth inning. That is a bit more velocity than he was showing a few years ago, and it seems he owes his increased velocity to 2003 nerve transposition surgery. Lost in the giddiness of his first major league season was the fact that he lost about two strikeouts per nine innings from his 2005 rate. Given his ultra-low BABIP (.243) and the fact that he nearly cut his career home run rate in half last year, it`s easy to see why he`s a good candidate for some regression. 2006 Dominated the Carolina League for two months, then moved up to Portland and continued to pitch well. After allowing just three earned runs in his first five outings in Double-A, he tired in August and was limited to 60 pitches per outing. Armed with a lively 95 mph fastball and a plus curveball, his best pitch is a nasty changeup that he hides well with consistent arm speed. He had ligament surgery on his pitching arm in 2003, but has completely recovered. Although Hanley Ramirez was the big-name prospect in the Beckett deal, Sanchez was the guy the team hated to give up. He would likely have gotten to Boston in 2006. 2005 After losing his entire 2003 season to elbow surgery, Sanchez came back throwing his excellent fastball faster than he had been before the surgery. He absolutely destroyed hitters in the NY-Penn League last year with that fastball, a good curve, and change-up. He'll only be 21 this year and, just like all the other young pitchers, if he can keep himself healthy, he's got a great shot to climb the ladder quickly.
|