Baseball Musings: Ian Maddux

March 11, 2008

Ian Maddux

Ian Kennedy wins comparisons with Greg Maddux as the thinking pitcher:

Because he can hit the corners, Kennedy himself takes pride in being able to throw the fastball on any count, taking exception to the idea that he is strictly a finesse pitcher.
"I still strike people out with my fastball," he said emphatically. "You can't pitch backwards all the time. Sometimes you want to give the hitter what he wants, you just have to hit your location.

"And sometimes you know what they're looking for, and you give them something that looks like it ... only it's different."

Spoken like a thinking man's pitcher, all right. And perhaps more than No.3 in the young-gun pecking order when all is said and done.

It's just another demonstration that pitching is more about fooling batters than overpowering batters.

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Posted by David Pinto at 07:53 AM | Pitchers | TrackBack (0)

Comments

He's only 346 wins behind Maddux.

Spoken like a thinking man's pitcher, all right. Spoken like every other pitcher in HS, JC, NCAA, minors

It's just another demonstration that pitching is more about fooling batters than overpowering batters. You should stick to stats since you have no idea how to play baseball.

Posted by: Bandit at March 11, 2008 11:07 AM

Bandit - You do realize that the indented text is from an article THAT SOMEONE ELSE WROTE! So good job on shooting the messenger.

Posted by: Tuz at March 11, 2008 11:23 AM

Maddux? ok Fine ! but if thats the case, the Yanks are looking foward to another first round playoff loss, because as we know Maddux was not the pitcher in the playoffs he was in-season. This should fit right in with Yank playoff showings these last few years. There....I said it. Maddux....pfft ! Already?

Posted by: Leco at March 11, 2008 07:56 PM

Maddux? ok Fine ! but if thats the case, the Yanks are looking foward to another first round playoff loss, because as we know Maddux was not the pitcher in the playoffs he was in-season.

Hmmm.

From Baseball Reference.com:

Maddux's lifetime regular season ERA: 3.11
Maddux's liftetime postseason ERA: 3.34

Yeah, there's a bit of a dropoff--against the best teams of both leagues, but a dropoff nonetheless.

How did the other "greatest pitchers of the era" do?

Roger Clemens: 3.12 regular season/3.75 postseason

Randy Johnson: 3.22 regular season/3.50 postseason

Pedro Martinez: 2.80 regular season/3.40 postseason

Yeah, that Maddux was a real batting practice guy in the postseason.*

*--yes, I'm aware of the limitations of ERA as a stat, but a 3.34 ERA is clearly *not* a sign that one is getting beaten on in the Second Live Ball Era.

Posted by: M. Scott Eiland at March 11, 2008 10:17 PM

I do and if you post it and then write some asinine comment endorsing it then it's reflective of your thoughts on it.

Posted by: Bandit at March 12, 2008 08:45 AM

M.Scott......I guess you told me. I'll be under my rock if you need me. Before I go, I'd like to throw the rest of the *stats* at you before I digress at your expense. Let's put aside the Division Series stats because that's when the pretenders get weeded out. In NLCS play, Maddux is 4-8 with a 3.80 ERA and is 2-3 in the WS. *hmmm* not that impressive is it?

I admit my meaning perhaps was lost in my last entry. My point (or my intended point) was I don't think we should be throwing out compliments like Twizzlers on Halloween. My **Pfft** was directed towards the comparison of the two and not at Maddux directly and his HOF career. I prefer that Kennedy put together a body of work first, before we put him in a conversation with Greg Maddux. Quite simply, for any one or two year pitcher to be compared to Maddux is an insult to Greg's career.

Perhaps what came through in my rant was my disdain for the Yanks. To listen to the radio talkies around here (yes I'm a New Yorker) is to have you believe Joba Chamberlain is being enshrined in Cooperstown this coming July.

So my " **** " using friend....I'm willing to meet you half way. I should have been more *clear* the first time around.

Hence....Ian Kennedy to Greg Maddux? pfft !

Posted by: Leco at March 12, 2008 07:26 PM

If what you're saying is that it's very premature to compare Kennedy to Maddux other than perhaps to note stylistic similarities, then you're unmistakably correct.

I will note that Maddux is 2-3 in the World Series with a 2.09 ERA--which tends to indicate that his problem was lack of support from his teammates, as does his losing two-thirds of his decisions in the LCS with an ERA of under 4.

Posted by: M. Scott Eiland at March 12, 2008 10:31 PM

M.Scott........you're ok with me "Kid" (Babe Ruth reference).

The following is a saying I came across maybe 20 years ago. I read it in a magazine, clipped it out, and it's been pinned on the corkboard ever since.

" A TRUE fan doesn't just eat, sleep and watch baseball - he, or she, ARGUES the fine points of the game...usually disguised as polite conversation, of course. "

(I feel like such a rebel with my usage of the word "it")

Posted by: Leco at March 12, 2008 11:53 PM

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