Matsuzaka Watch

That's it

The 7th inning was a 12 pitch affair that saw Daisuke regain his strength and strike out both Shealy and Gload on very tough sliders. He looked more and more like Daisuke Matsuzaka as the game went on. The command of the fastball was good, and the slider, curve, and change worked better and better in the later innings. In the end, his stat line was:

7 IP
6 hits
1 HR
1 ER
1 walk
10 K
108 pitches

If you look back at my prediction, the only thing I missed was the 8th inning and extra 20 pitches. The rest of the numbers were dead on. (Pats self on the back).

Yes, it's Kansas City. Yes, he still has to do this against the Yankees, Tigers, Angels, and so on. Could you have asked for any more in a debut? 10 Ks for Daisuke in his first go around is outstanding. One walk makes it all the more remarkable. The WHIP is 1.000 and the K:BB is 10.00. His 1 game K-rate is 12.86 per 9 innings. I'll be back later today with a batter by batter recap of the game. You'll be able to see the pattern he used to work each man three times through the order. Thanks for reading. Remember, come back later for more....

posted by Mike Plugh @ 5:23 AM