Pedro Martinez Returns

by Harry Pavlidis on Aug 12, 2009 11:49 PM EDT in Pitch f/x Goodies

Martinez came back against the Cubs, tossing 99 pitches, topping out just under 93 mph, which are both pretty darn good for this vintage of Martinez.

He threw change-ups, sinkers, fastballs slutter/slider/slurve thingees and a curveball.

Fastball: 90 mph
Sinker: 89 mph (adds 3 inches of tail and over 3 inches of sink to the fastball)
Slider: 82 mph
Change-up: 79 mph (a little more tail than the sinker with 3 more inches of sink)
Curveball: 73 mph (good drop, but even more hook)

Flight paths and more after the jump.

Click for larger versions

Pedro was Mr. Fly Ball, getting only 12% of balls in play on the ground. 18% were pop-ups, which is sky high. No pun intended. No one offered at a curveball, resulting in just a single called strike. Otherwise, Pedro worked the zone more than 52% with each pitch.

Martinez liked his sinker, but even that only yielded fly balls (two flies and two line drives). Pedro threw it 25 times, second only to the four-seam fastball (30), but it was the one pitch the Cubs managed to hit hard. While no one swung at the curveball, the other pitches combined for an even .300 whiff rate, ranging from .222 (sinker) to .357 (slider).

We'll see how Pedro looks next time out before passing judgement, but he got off on the right foot.

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I really noticed the tail on the sinker more than anything from watching his outing

Really looked good, and the data shows the same.

Really interested in seeing how he does going forward, and if this was just an adrenaline rush type of thing.

MLB Notebook / StatSpeak / Baseball Daily Digest / Inside the Majors

by Zach Sanders on Aug 12, 2009 11:57 PM EDT reply actions

Stamina

I really think he looked better in innings one through four than inning five. Hopefully the average FB velo can go up a tick as he stretches out a bit. The same thing happened in his two most recent rehab starts (including the 11 K one).

by Tommy Bennett on Aug 12, 2009 11:59 PM EDT reply actions

Nice curve, change and slider.

@bs_uf15bosox9be The Original Gameday; Learn to use SB Nation

by bdalebs on Aug 13, 2009 12:01 AM EDT reply actions

I should follow-up

with the “versions” of the slider. And an inning-by-inning breakdown. I think stamina is going to be a big hurdle. Still, his stuff looks really good, and he he threw strikes.

Another concern is that flyball rate. Not sure how that plays in the Philly bandbox.

by Harry Pavlidis on Aug 13, 2009 1:19 AM EDT up reply actions

Meh.

Small sample size. Coulda been first start jitters, unfamiliartiy with the catcher, etc. Stamina’s going to be big though, I agree. Maybe a color coded velocity scatter chart based on pitch type?

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by bdalebs on Aug 13, 2009 1:18 PM EDT up reply actions

I remember someone (Josh Kalk I’m assuming) talking last year or the year before about how Pedro should throw his 2-seamer/sinker a ton more than he does and substantially more than his 4-seamer. Given the movement and still being 89 MPH, he definitely should.

Very encouraging outing.

Fire Jim Leyland

And now at Beyond the Boxscore!

by Mike Rogers on Aug 13, 2009 4:06 AM EDT reply actions