Jason Marquis is out for the rest of the season and may require Tommy John surgery:
For now no decision has been made about surgery, but his season is over and at age 34 his career is in jeopardy too.
Actually, I suspect TJ surgery might give him a new lease on life. Basically, a pitcher gets a new arm. The question will be how the rest of his body holds up, since he probably wouldn’t be back until 2015 at age 36.
Chris Sale tries to stop the powerful Detroit lineup as the Tigers send Anibal Sanchez against the White Sox. Sale owns as many losses as all last season despite a lower ERA and better three-true outcome numbers. The White Sox scored three runs or less in ten of his starts, and were shutout the last two times Sale took the mound. Sanchez cut his HR rate in half compared to his career numbers, leading to a 2.70 ERA.
Jordan Zimmermann tries to become the fourth Washington Nationals pitcher to reach 13 wins in a season as he faces Kyle Kendrick in Philadelphia. Livan Hernandez won 15 games in 2005, Stephen Strasburg won 15 games in 2012, and Gio Gonzalez won 21 games in 2012. Zimmermann’s 2.57 ERA is due to his stinginess with walks, just 18 in 126 innings. Kendrick allowed eight of his 12 home runs at home this season, with his innings fairly evenly split between home and road.
Finally, Madison Bumgarner tries to give the Giants some good news on the pitching front. Matt Cain says he’s not hurt, but didn’t get out of the first inning on Wednesday. Bumgarner comes into the game with five straight quality starts, despite allowing five home runs in those 35 innings. He takes on Jason Marquis and the Padres. Marquis walked 63 and struck out 69 in 107 innings, making his 3.79 ERA pretty impressive. Opponents hit just .200 against him with runners in scoring position. Jason should be a disaster waiting to happen.
Enjoy!
Hey, hosers, it’s Canada Day! Crack open a Moosehead, fry some back bacon, and enjoy an afternoon contest between the Tigers and Blue Jays, eh. Detroit sends Jose Alvarez to the mound against R.A. Dickey. Alvarez is off to a good MLB start, with a 3.78 ERA after three games. He’s struck out 13 and walked four in 16 2/3 innings, but allowed four home runs. Dickey already allowed 17 home runs this season after giving up 24 in 2012. His walk rate is way up, also with 41 in 108 2/3 innings this year after walking just 54 in over 200 innings in 2011 and 2012.
Tonight, the Padres and Marlins finish their series with Jason Marquis facing Jose Fernandez. Marquis owns a strange stat line, in that his three true outcomes are poor, yet he allows few hits and his ERA is about two runs lower than his FIP and about a run lower than his xFIP. It seems the Padres defense matches Jason’s skills well. Fernandez is another 20 year old making his mark, posting a 2.98 ERA with great strikeout and walk numbers. He is certainly a fine candidate for the Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year award.
Enjoy!
I like the west coast offerings on Thursday, starting with the Athletics going for their eighth win in a row as A.J. Griffin faces the Angels and Jason Vargas. The A’s offense is on fire, having scored eight runs or more in five of their games during the streak. About the only person not hitting is Yoenis Cespedes, but so many batters have been on base that he drove in five runs.
Justin Grimm and the Rangers get a tough assignment as they take on Felix Hernandez and the Mariners. Grimm showed great control and power in his cup of coffee last season, but it did not translate into a low ERA. Hernandez starts at home for the first time this season, so we’ll see how much the new dimensions hurt his game.
Finally, Zack Greinke and Jason Marquis square off in San Diego as the Dodgers face the Padres. Both pitchers put the ball in the strike zone, walking few batters, but Greinke misses bats more often.
Enjoy!
Jason Marquis delivered for the Padres Saturday evening, throwing a two-hit shutout as San Diego wins 5-0. Jason walked one and struck out four, as the Pirates balls in play seldom fell for hits. Jason’s ERA with the Padres now stands at 3.66.
The last two games have not help the Pirates championship hopes. They blew a big lead on Friday, then can’t score against someone pitching to contact. They’re little things in isolation, but it’s something the post-Bonds Pirates would do, not the championship teams. I hope they turn this around quickly.
Meanwhile, the Padres have won six in a row and seven of their last eight. They are 13 games under .500, but maybe they can finish the season on a strong note and look respectable going into the 2013 season.
The Twins send Brian Duensing against the Reds and Johnny Cuteo Saturday afternoon. Duensing regained control of his gopher ball pitches this season and allowed just one home run in 34 2/3 innings this season. He’ll be challenged pitching at Great American Ballpark against the Reds. Cueto’s excellent control and low home run rate puts him in Cy Young contention as we approach the end of June.
Edwin Jackson takes on Chen Wei-Yin as the Nationals try to even their series with Baltimore. Jackson owns an extremely low BABIP this season, as the Washington defense plays well behind him. His ERA is a run lower than his xFIP. Chen is undefeated at home, 4-0 with a 2.72 ERA. He walked just nine batters in 39 2/3 innings in Baltimore.
Finally, a marquee matchup in San Diego as Felix Hernandez battles Jason Marquis. Felix’s home run, walk, strikeout rate and ERA come very close to what he posted last year, as he continues to be consistent. Unfortunately, it’s not as good as his two previous seasons. Could he have peaked at age 24 due to his early start in the majors? After pitching poorly for the Twins, Marquis struck out 20 in 19 1/3 innings for the Padres.
Enjoy!
The Twins desginated Jason Marquis for assignment.
Marquis, 33, has been pretty terrible for the Twins all season, posting a 2-4 record with an 8.47 ERA, 1.94 WHIP and more walks (14) than strikeouts (12). That last straw appears to have been Sunday’s start against the Brewers, where Marquis was lit up for eight runs on eight hits and lasted just 1 2/3 innings.
He’s pitched a long time for someone with a 4.63 ERA. His best year might have been the one with Colorado. He posted a 4.04 ERA as a Rockies pitcher in 2009, which made clubs think he could actually pitch. I’m not sure he’ll get picked up again, unless some team is really hurt by injuries.
Arizona right-hander Jason Marquis broke his right shinbone after getting hit by a line drive Sunday.
At first he stayed in the game after he was hit by a ball off the bat of the Mets’ Angel Pagan in the top of the third inning.
With one out on the fourth, the former Cubs pitcher hit Josh Thole with a pitch and dropped to the ground after his delivery clutching his right shin.
It’s possible that the line drive didn’t totally break the shin, but weakened it enough that the stress of pitching finished the job. Jason’s not likely to return this season.
Arizona leads the Mets 4-3 in the bottom of the seventh.
Edwin Jackson makes his second start for St. Louis as he faces the Brewers and Randy Wolf in the rubber game of this important NL Central series. Jackson held the Cubs to one run in seven innings in his first start. Despite striking out just nine batters in 22 innings since the All-Star break, he’s 3-0 with a 1.23 ERA. The Cardinals knocked around Wolf in his only start against them this season, scoring six runs in five innings against him.
Arizona goes for a sweep of the Giants and first place in the NL West with Jason Marquis taking on Ryan Vogelsong. Marquis makes his first start for Arizona after averaging six innings in his twenty starts for the Nationals. He’s done a good job of keeping the ball in the park this season, thanks to his high ground ball rate. That should when he pitches in Arizona, as it helped him when he pitched for the Rockies. Vogelsong is very tough in San Francisco, with a 1.28 ERA this year at home. He’s allowed just three home runs in 63 1/3 innings by the bay.
Enjoy!
I just heard on the Mariners broadcast that the Nationals traded Jason Marquis to the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Update: Here’s more:
Class A infielder Zachary Walters will go to Washington in the deal, a source said.
Walters is tearing up A ball at age 21. We’ll see if the Nationals move him up to AA to see how he plays.
The Mariners and Nationals offer a nice late-lunch tilt as Michael Pineda faces Jason Marquis. Part of Pineda’s success comes from his home ballpark, as his ERA stands at 1.99 in Seattle, 3.32 on the road. He strikes out fewer batters away from Seattle, leading to a few more hits, but the biggest difference is the opposition’s average with men in scoring position, .182 at home and .267 on the road. Marquis seems to turn on the Nationals offense, as the team scored six runs or more in nine of his 14 starts.
The Twins and Giants finish their series by the bay with an early afternoon game PDT as Brian Duensing battles Tim Lincecum. Duensing pitches better on the road due to a better K/BB. He struck out 19 and walked 14 at home in 33 innings, batters hitting .307 against him. On the road he accumulated 34 K and 11 BB, and batters hit .282 with a 40 lower OBP. Lincecum is having a strange June. His strikeouts are high, but so are his walks and hits allowed. That caused him to post a 7.59 ERA for the month.
Finally, veterans Roy Oswalt and Chris Carpenter square off as the Phillies go for a sweep of the Cardinals. Roy’s strikeout numbers haven’t been up to their usual All-Star quality, but most teams would love to have someone with a 3.38 ERA as their fourth starter. Carpenter is experiencing his worst season since leaving Toronto in terms of ERA. It has to be a frustrating season, because in many aspects he’s pitching better than he did in 2010, with his FIP dropping from 3.69 to 3.52. The big negative is that batters are squaring the ball better, with 23.4% of the balls in play against him scored as line drives versus 16.7% last season.
Enjoy!
Four suspension came down due to a bean-ball war between the Nationals and Diamondbacks:
Washington Nationals pitcher Jason Marquis and Arizona starter Esmerling Vasquez have been suspended for throwing at hitters last weekend after both teams had been warned.
Marquis was penalized five games and fined an undisclosed amount Tuesday by Major League Baseball. Vasquez was suspended three games and also fined. Both pitchers have appealed and can play until the process is complete.
Both managers were also suspended.
Jonathan Papelbon will lose some games due to bumping an umpire. All three pitchers are appealing their suspensions.
Jason Marquis five hits the Giants, not allowing a walk and striking out seven as he pitches a 3-0 shutout. It’s the fourth shutout of his career and his first since the 2009 season. Marquis even helped himself with an RBI as he goes one for three on the evening, lowering his batting average to .385.
Tim Lincecum regained his control as he did not walk a batter, but a two-run homer by Laynce Nix sealed Tim’s fate in the second inning.
Toronto invades New York 3 1/2 games behind the Yankees as Ricky Romero faces Freddy Garcia. The Blue Jays are coming off a big series win against the Texas Rangers. Early on, it looks like Romero improved both his walk and strike out rates, which so far has led to a big reduction in his ERA for the second year in a row. Garcia is part of the Yankees scrap heap miracle, as he allowed just one run in his first 13 innings of work. Opponents are hitting just .116 against him, and neither left-handed nor right-handed batters are hitting him well.
The Giants bring their two-time Cy Young Award winner to Washington as Tim Lincecum battles Jason Marquis and the Nationals. Despite walking a career high six in his last outing, Tim only allowed 13 walks in 33 1/3 innings this year against 38 strikeouts. Marquis keeps the ball in the park, and with 22 of the 30 hits against him going for singles, the .297 BA against him isn’t doing too much damage.
The Cardinals and Braves send two great veterans to the mound in Chris Carpenter and Tim Hudson. Carpenter’s walks and strikeouts sit at their usual fine levels, but he’s been hurt by four home runs in 30 innings, three of them with runners on base. Hudson in 2011 demonstrates once again that a high ground ball rate can make up for a lack of strikeouts. He’s over 60% ground balls for the third year in a row.
Finally, Texas visits Oakland for four games with a three-game lead over the Athletics. It’s a chance for the A’s to make a move in the AL West. C.J. Wilson and Trevor Cahill kick off the series. Wilson was effective in two starts against Oakland in 2010, holding them to four runs and 11 hits in 12 2/3 innings. He did walk five, but he also kept the ball in the park. Cahill gets a boost from his home park, with a .238/.300/.389 slash line against at the Coliseum.
Enjoy!
Adam Kilgore dissects Jason Marquis’s Bugs Bunny slow ball.
Yovani Gallardo tries to solve his power issues against the Nationals. Photo: Icon SMI
Toronto and Boston continue their Patriot Day weekend series with Jesse Litsch taking on Jon Lester. While the Blue Jays hope Listch returns to his 2008 form, so far he surpassed that in one regard, his strikeouts. With 11 K in 11 1/3 innings, this is not the low strikeout pitcher the Toronto fans knew. The strikeouts are covering a rise in his walk level, so we’ll see which of the two hold up. If he can maintain the whiffs while regaining control, Jesse will look like an ace. Lester recovered from his poor first start to strike out 17 batters during his last 14 innings without allowing a home run.
Yovani Gallardo and Jason Marquis face off in the first game of the Brewers/Nationals double header. The positive note for Gallardo is his 2.70 ERA. On the negative side, he walked 9 and struck out just eight in 20 innings. Gallardo is a power pitcher, so if his Ks remain low, I would tend to think something is wrong with him. Marquis is just the opposite. He’s never shown much ability to strike out a ton of batters, but owns 11 K with just two walks in his first 12 1/3 innings this season.
Clayton Richard and Brett Myers battle in Houston as the Padres go for a series split with the Astros. Richard, a left-handed pitcher, has been nearly unhittable this season. Left-handed batters are just 3 for 14 with no walks and no extra base hits, while righties post a .195/.267/.317 slash line against him. Myers is not only doing a good job of keeping batters off base (.284 OBP allowed), but does an even better job of stranding them as they are just 1 for 15 with runners in scoring position. Only one of the five extra base hits he allowed came with men on base.
The Mariners send rookie Michael Pineda against the Royals and Jeff Francis as the Royals try to hang on to at least a tie for first in the AL Central. Pineda, in his first year in the majors, showed strength so far in the three true outcomes, with good K, BB and HR rates (he’s yet to allow a long ball). Francis is inducing the highest percentage of ground balls in his career. He’s throwing his change up more, and while it comes in with the same horizontal movement as his fastball, it drops more so batters might top it.
Jeff Francis fastball and change up movement, 2011. Fastball light green, change up blue.
Finally, ESPN offers a contest between first place teams as the Yankees host the Rangers. Alexi Ogando faces CC Sabathia. Ogando allowed just four hits and no runs in his first two starts, covering 13 innings. A right-handed pitcher, lefties are just 2 for 28 against him. Sabathia pitched well enough to win his three starts, but brings an 0-1 record into the game despite a 1.45 ERA. Milliliter has shown some control problems, walking seven batters in his 18 2/3 innings of work. He’s kept out of big trouble, however, with a .125 BA allowed with runners in scoring position.
Enjoy!
Thanks to Baseball Analytics for the heat map.
Chris Young of the Mets leverages his height into a high strikeout rate. Photo: Icon SMI
The Nationals and the Mets play the rubber game of their series with two pitchers trying to recover from injury filled 2010 seasons. Jason Marquis takes on Chris Young. Marquis did not walk a batter in his first start, and made one mistake to Logan Morrison that ended in a home run. Young struck out seven batters in 5 1/3 innings, but also walked four. He still managed to hold the Phillies to one run.
Jhoulys Chacin and the first place Rockies face James McDonald and the second place Pirates in Pittsburgh. Chacin started the season right with seven shutout innings, holding opponents to an 0 for 9 with runners on base in his first start. McDonald made a real improvement since moving from the Dodgers to the Pirates, with lower walk and home run rates and a higher K rate. After this start, his innings pitched with both should be fairly even.
In Seattle, the Indians try to keep their winning streak alive as they send Josh Tomlin against Erik Bedard. Tomlin is only 80 innings into his career, but managed to hold opponents to just 22 walks. He has allowed 10 home runs, but kept the Red Sox in the park in his first start. Bedard pitched five innings in his return from a missed 2010 season. He allowed five runs, but two of those were unearned. He tended to throw strikes right over the middle of the plate, which will hurt him if he keeps that up.
Finally, the Yankees and Red Sox finish their series at Fenway on ESPN with CC Sabathia facing Josh Beckett. CC pitched well enough in his first two starts to win, but walked away with no decisions. He’s doing everything right so far, with 13 K, 3 BB and no HR in 13 innings pitched. Beckett lasted just five innings in his only start of the season allowing three runs. The good news he kept the ball in the park which was a real problem for him in 2010. The bad news is that he walked four, after an elevated walk rate in 2010.
Enjoy!
Jason Marquis battled Roy Oswalt evenly, both allowing one run and throwing the decisions to the bullpens as Washington defeated the Phillies 2-1. Marquis allowed two runs or less in six of his last eight starts, with one horrible start pushing his ERA to 3.61. This finish has to give Washington some hope of getting a decent year out of Jason in 2011.
The Phillies make short work of Jason Marquis, driving him out of the game after recording just one out. He faces nine batters, getting the leadoff hitter, but giving up six hits, a walk and a hit batter to the rest as the Phillies score six in the first. They kept the offense up as they defeat the Nationals 9-1. That win maintains their NL East lead over the Braves.
Roy Oswalt continues to impress, pitching six innings in the blowout, walking one and striking out seven. He’s 4-0 in September with a 1.27 ERA.
It appears all Jason Marquis needed to right himself was to face the Pittsburgh Pirates. The lowest scoring team in the NL managed to draw zero walks against a wild pitcher, and scored just one run in six innings as Washington wins 8-1. The Nationals helped out Charlie Morton‘s ERA as well, as he allowed just two earned runs in 3 2/3 innings. He gave up six runs in total, however, and with eight hits, two walks and a home run allowed, put up his typical poor performance.
Wierd Al Yankovic did a spoof of the song One Week called Jerry Springer. In the song he describes the show:
It’s totally worthless, like a bad check
It’s like a train wreck
Don’t wanna stare but you can’t look away
That’s what came to mind when I saw that the Washington/Pittsburgh game featured Jason Marquis against Charlie Morton. Marquis comes into the game with a 1-7 record and an 8.13 ERA. Much of that ERA was compiled before his injury was apparent. Since his return, his ERA is 4.15, but he hasn’t pitched well at all. He walked 14 and struck out nine in 26 innings with five home runs allowed. Off hand, I’d say he was lucky to have an ERA that low in his last five starts. Morton holds a 1-10 record with a 10.03 ERA. Morton’s strikeouts and walks aren’t that bad, 37 K and 17 BB in 46 2/3 innings. He’s allowed 13 home runs, however, and 75 hits. He went down to the minor to straighten himself out, came back and gave up eight runs, seven earned, in 3 1/3 innings. He walked one and struck out six in the game, but allowed a home run of course.
The two are a combined 2-17 in 19 starts. They’re so bad, their teams can’t even come back from the deficits they leave. Both are averaging just over four innings a start. Morton’s BABIP is .396, which should be unsustainable. However, a quarter of the balls in play against him are line drives, so he’s not fooling anyone. Marquis simply strikes out so few batters that the balls in play against him produce a .324 BA. That goes up to .389 with runners in scoring position.
Both these pitchers turn opponents into the Gas House Gorillas conga line. If you like offense, this is the game to watch. The only positive thing to say is that at least one of these pitchers won’t lose.
Jason Marquis didn’t feel well after his rehabilitation start:
Marquis made a rehab start for Class-A Potomac on Tuesday night and said his elbow stiffened after he woke up Wednesday morning. He says there’s a “strong possibility” he’ll have surgery to clean out bone chips, which he estimates would probably sideline him until August.
That’s too bad for Jason, and for the Nationals who expected him to be an innings eater this season.
The Nationals report doctors found floating bodies in Jason Marquis’s elbow. When someone pitches as poorly as Jason did the other night, and over the over the season so far, my first reaction is that the player is hurt. Marquis goes on the disabled list, and Stephen Strasburg is one step closer to the major leagues.
It appears Jason Marquis can throw strikes in a batting cage.
“He threw nothing but strikes,” McCatty said. “Good sink. It looked real good. Sometimes you get out there and you want to do so well. You’re coming over here, wanting to be that competitive guy. He’s really pressing.”
…
McCatty, though, leaned toward the mental aspect. For the first-time in his 10-year career, Marquis arrived with a new team carrying high expectations. The Nationals brought him here to lead their staff. The pressure combined with miserable early results has worn on him. Manager Jim Riggleman said Marquis looked “down in the dumps” when he came off the field yesterday.
I can’t really see where he’s in a pressure filled situation. No one really expects the Nats to compete this season. Jason gets a lot money to pitch 200 innings and mentor. No one is going to terribly upset if he goes out and gives up three or four runs in six inning of work every start. He’s an average pitcher in his 30s with 10 years of major league wear and tear on his arm. It could be as simple as he’s over the hill.
Jason Marquis put National fans in a lot of pain today as he faces seven batters, gives up four hits, a walk and two hit batsmen. He leaves with the bases loaded and the Brewers up 4-0. Miguel Batista comes in and gives up an infield single to make the score 5-0 Brewers.
By the time this inning is over, Marquis will have an ERA around 20.00. It looks like his great year with the Rockies is turning out to be a fluke, rather than a new level of performance.
Update: Craig Counsell hits a grand slam off Batista, and Marquis allows seven earned runs without recording an out. That gives him a 20.52 ERA for the season, 19 earned runs in 8 1/3 innings.
Jason Marquis faced the minimum through three innings, getting six outs on balls hit on the ground. He walked one in the third, the only batter to reach against him, but he was replaced on a double play. Marquis’s success in Colorado last year was due to his ability to induce ground balls, and he seems to be in the groove today. The Nationals lead the Phillies 2-0 in the fourth.
The Twins open their new home as they host the Boston Red Sox. With all the home grown talent on the team, the pitcher who gets to toss the first ball turns out to be Carl Pavano, who will take on Jon Lester. Pavano certainly embodies the Twins pitching style of seldom walking a batter, but it would seem appropriate to open a new ballpark with one of the new generation of pitchers on the team. Lester pitched poorly against the Twins, especially in his last two starts. With their history against Jon, the Twins drew a good opponent for opening day. Also, expect some extra base hits today as Boston and Minnesota rank one and four in slugging percentage respectively in the American League.
The Cubs send Ryan Dempster to the mound as they open a refurbished Wrigley Field. He’ll take on Doug Davis and the Brewers. Davis pitched well in his stints with Milwaukee, one game over .500 with a 3.95 ERA, both better than his overall career stats. Dempster started strong for the Cubs, but despite allowing one run in six innings his first time out, he did not walk away with a decision.
The Indians open Jacobs Field for 2010 with Fausto Carmona hosting Rich Harden and the Texas Rangers. both are making comebacks of sorts. Carmona walked six in his first start after showing fantastic control during spring training. Harden also allowed a high walk total, but struck out eight batters, allowing just one hit over 3 2/3 innings.
The Phillies showed up for the Nationals home opener, and the Nats return the favor as they play the first game of 2010 at Citizen’s Bank Park. Jason Marquis takes on Cole Hamels. The Phillies roughed up Jason quite a bit, scoring six runs while collecting eight hits and three walks in four innings. The Nats worked Cole for four walks in five innings, and managed three runs against the lefty.
The Padres offer one of the better home opening match-ups of the day as Jair Jurrjens and the Braves face Kevin Correia. Jurrjens started the season with five solid innings of work, not allowing a run. Correia walked none and struck out six, but three home runs led to four runs scored against him. That should be less of a problem in San Diego.
Also playing 2010 home openers today are the Cardinals as they host the Astros, the Mariners welcoming the Athletics, and Blue Jays facing the White Sox.
Enjoy!
The Washington Nationals are close to signing Jason Marquis:
While Nationals representatives would not confirm the signing, one club official did say that they were working out the details on a deal with the pitcher and that any deal would be contingent on Marquis passing a physical.
I spoke with Nationals pitcher Jason Bergmann a few minutes ago about the deal.
“I am excited that we are able to add a starting pitcher of his caliber,” Bergmann said. “It is a good day for our team and our fan base. It shows the league that the Nats are serious about getting better and contending. Marquis is a top of the rotation starter that can go deep into games. He was an All-Star last year and is a groundball pitcher. He is a veteran presence on our pitching staff and can be a mentor for our younger players.”
Jason is not a great pitcher, but had a great 2009, especially considering he pitched in Coors. He should give the Nationals 190 to 200 innings, which they need to help save the bullpen. He’s not a savior or an ace, but given the poor quality of the Washington staff last year he should help them.