Bobby Valentine on Matsuzaka---NY Times
"Bobby Valentine, the manager of Japan’s Chiba Lotte Marines and a former major league manager, said in April that Matsuzaka would develop in the majors as long as he did not get worn down by pitching every fifth day and threw only about 35 percent fastballs.
- Matsuzaka’s performance has made Valentine sound like a soothsayer. Matsuzaka has struggled with a heftier workload and he has thrown fastballs more than half the time. According to Inside Edge, a scouting service, 56 percent of Matsuzaka’s pitches have been fastballs. If Matsuzaka is behind in the count, the number increases to 58 percent.
“I have seen some games and I cannot believe that he does not throw more changeups and split-finger pitches,” Valentine said in an e-mail message. “It looks like he is trying to prove he can pitch like the American pitchers and, as I said, that would be a formula for failure.”"
- (I recall Valentine speaking on WFAN last November saying Dice-K was a great addition, etc., but Valentine wouldn't go so far as to say he'd be as good as Pedro at his best). sm ***Here's the link to my post on Valentine's appearance with Mike and Chris on WFAN, 11/15/06.
(NY Times): "One A.L. talent evaluator who has scouted Matsuzaka’s recent starts said Matsuzaka grew exasperated when he could not throw strikes with his changeup or his splitter. The umpires in Japan, where Matsuzaka pitched for eight years, tend to call more strikes on high pitches.
- When Matsuzaka does not get strikes with his other pitches, he can get flustered and resort to throwing fastballs, lots of them. Farrell said pitchers sometimes “revert to aggressiveness” when they are in a tough spot, and rely on the pitch that secures the most strikes. Matsuzaka seems to think that is the fastball. Valentine said he thought Matsuzaka’s changeup was his key pitch."
- P.S. The Red Sox will still win the division easily--per sm. (me)
posted by susan at
9/13/2007 11:03:00 PM
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