Wednesday afternoon in Our Nation’s Capital, three things happened:
Is The Real Roy Oswalt Still Missing?
Since coming off the DL a few weeks ago, Roy Oswalt’s given up only five runs in 23 innings. But is Oswalt fully recovered from the injury that landed him on the DL?
The Washington Nationals won.
The Philadelphia Phillies lost.
Teddy Roosevelt came up short yet again.
In the Grand Scheme, none of these things really matter. The Nationals aren’t going to the playoffs, the Phillies probably are, and outside of Sesame Street there’s not a full-body puppet on the planet who makes a real difference to anyone.
Granted, we can probably assume that John Lannan enjoyed Wednesday afternoon. Entering the day, Lannan had started 13 times against the Phillies, and gone 0-10 with a 6.44 ERA.
But after limiting the Phils to just one run in 5-1/3 innings -- and getting some serious help from his bullpen -- Lannan’s finally beaten Philadelphia. Which is nice for him and his.
Let's focus on the loser of Wednesday's game, though: Roy Oswalt.
Oswalt didn't pitch poorly, at all. He lasted only five innings, but gave up only two runs and was lifted so early only because the Phillies, in the top of the sixth inning, loaded the bases with two outs and Oswalt due next. Reasonably enough, Charlie Manuel bumped Oswalt for pinch-hitter Domonic Brown, who drove a ball into the left-field gap that was snagged for a (probably) game-saving out by left fielder Laynce Nix in a full-out belly-sliding dive.
The Nats got their first run in the first inning, and their second in the third when Oswalt hung a change-up and Nix deposited it beyond the right-field fence.
Otherwise Oswalt was mostly untouchable. Which is nothing new for him. In his four starts since coming off the Disabled List, he’s given up only five runs in 23 innings and lowered his ERA to 2.70, right in line with last year’s mark. If Roy Owalt isn’t getting better with age, he certainly doesn’t seem to be getting worse.
Still, perhaps it’s worth raising a small voice of concern about Oswalt.
Wednesday, he struck out three Nationals in five innings, and walked two. In his four starts since coming off the DL, he’s struck out 11 batters in those 23 innings. In his first four starts this season, he struck out 21 batters in 24 innings.
It’s probably a small thing. Or maybe it’s a big thing that Oswalt’s just learned to live with. But the Roy Oswalt we’ve seen lately bears just a passing resemblance to the Roy Oswalt we saw in April. And it’s not yet completely clear that this new Roy Oswalt is going to pitch as brilliantly as the old Roy Oswalt.
See More:
