Baseball Toaster Mike's Baseball Rants
Help
This is my site with my opinions, but I hope that, like Irish Spring, you like it, too.
Frozen Toast
Search
Google Search
Web
Toaster
Mike's Baseball Rants
Archives

2009
01 

2008
10  09  07 
06  05  04  03 

2007
12  11  10  09  08  07 
06  05  04  03  02  01 

2006
12  11  10  09  08  07 
06  05  04  03  02  01 

2005
12  11  10  09  08  07 
06  05  04  03  02  01 

2004
12  11  10  09  08  07 
06  05  04  03  02  01 

2003
12  11  10  09  08  07 
06  05  04  03  02  01 

2002
12  11  10  09  08  07 
Links to MBBR
"Sounds Great, Greg" The D-Backs
2003-02-24 23:43
by Mike Carminati

"Sounds Great, Greg"

The D-Backs Greg Swindell is contemplating using his knuckleball in real live, honest-to-goodness games. Given his precipitous dropoff in the last few years, anything is worth a shot.

Take a look at his ERA and relative ERA (thanks to baseball-reference.com) since converting completely to a reliever:

Year	Age	ERA	Adj ERA
1997	32	3.58	130
1998	33	3.59	130
1999	34	2.51	177
2000	35	3.20	147
2001	36	4.53	101
2002	37	6.27	70

That's four very good years, one average to subpar (given that "average" is actually poor for a reliever), and one god-awful year. It looks to me like his arm has reached the end of the line. Maybe a knuckleball can save his career-he wouldn't be the first pitcher to extend his career via a trick pitch.

The sad part is that the D-Backs bullpen is so poor and so starved for a quality left-hander (Eddie Oropesa? C'mon!) that he may make the team even if the knuckler doesn't pan out.

[By the way, bonus points to anyone who knew that the headline was a line from the Brady Bunch.]


Comment status: comments have been closed. Baseball Toaster is now out of business.