Yankees fans have long memories. During their recent home series against the Angels, they cheered the visiting Hideki Matsui and booed own starter Javier Vazquez. Not only because Vazquez had his second straight rough start, but also because in his first go-around in New York, six years ago, he posted a 4.91 ERA.
With Vazquez, Yankees Fans Have Reason To Be Alarmed
↵But this isn’t about whether it’s fair to boo someone over six-year-old transgressions. Rather, this is about Vazquez’s disappointing performance, and whether Yankee fans should be concerned. Ordinarily, when you have a guy coming off a string of successful seasons, as Vazquez is, you give him the benefit of the doubt. A year ago, Vazquez posted one of the best K/BB ratios in baseball. You would expect a pitcher with that track record to be able to bounce back.
↵And the likelihood is that Vazquez will. However, this isn’t simply a statistical issue. There’s an underlying problem here:
↵2009: 91.1mph average fastball, full season
2009: 90.4mph average fastball in April
2010: 88.9mph average fastball
↵Vazquez hasn’t only struggled with hits and command. His fastball through two starts is also down 1.5mph from where it was a year ago in Atlanta. And, as you can imagine, velocity drops aren’t ever good. Vazquez has been the picture of durability since he broke into the league, making at least 32 starts in ten consecutive seasons, but a velocity drop like this raises some red flags. Fastballs generally don’t slow down for no reason.
↵It’s too early for anyone to panic, and two starts is two starts. However, this is something to keep an eye on going forward. Javier Vazquez has pitched below his ability once before in New York, and if he does it again, that race is going to be wide, wide open.
See More:
