This is the prevailing thought of Ol' Clench Jaw, the one thing he seems to yammer on about more than all other potential thoughts on why the team has struggled.
I know what you might be thinking. "But, Scott! This team's .500ish play is one of the most surprising things in baseball!"
Yeah, I know, but struggling is struggling. You're either good or you're not. They're struggling to reach .500. They struggle. All the time.
Some folks 'round these parts have started wondering something else. "Well, if the problem is they aren't pitching deeper...then leave them the hell in the game, Dave."
Fair enough. There have been times when it seems he's taken the hook out a little early, and times when it seems he's taken the hook out a little late. But "early" seems to be more the problem. The winds of change -- thanks to the recent losing -- have started to sing a tale of Trembley's over-reliance on the bullpen. Let's take a look at pitch count data for our current starting five and see if we can find a method to Trembley's madness.
(All numbers are grabbed from Yahoo! Sports)
| Pitch Count | ERA | WHIP |
|---|---|---|
| 1-15 | 10.67 | 2.23 |
| 16-30 | 4.41 | 1.10 |
| 31-45 | 1.50 | 1.11 |
| 46-60 | 1.27 | 1.13 |
| 61-75 | 6.19 | 1.56 |
| 76-90 | 4.64 | 1.27 |
| 91-105 | 5.14 | 1.43 |
| 106-120 | 0.00 | 1.50 |
| IP at 91+ pitches: 17.1 | ||
| Total Innings: 124.2 |
| Pitch Count | ERA | WHIP |
|---|---|---|
| 1-15 | 9.19 | 1.15 |
| 16-30 | 7.02 | 1.68 |
| 31-45 | 2.50 | 1.28 |
| 46-60 | 2.29 | 0.81 |
| 61-75 | 0.92 | 0.97 |
| 76-90 | 1.25 | 0.92 |
| 91-105 | 3.77 | 1.26 |
| 106-120 | 0.00 | 3.30 |
| 121-135.0.00 | INF | |
| IP at 91+ pitches: 17.2 | ||
| Total Innings: 129 |
| Pitch Count | ERA | WHIP |
|---|---|---|
| 1-15 | 3.86 | 1.29 |
| 16-30 | 10.13 | 2.63 |
| 31-45 | 7.71 | 1.47 |
| 46-60 | 1.80 | 1.60 |
| 61-75 | 4.82 | 1.29 |
| 76-90 | 4.15 | 1.38 |
| 91-105 | 0.00 | 0.83 |
| 106-120 | 0.00 | INF |
| IP at 91+ pitches: 6 | ||
| Total Innings: 98.2 |
| Pitch Count | ERA | WHIP |
|---|---|---|
| 1-15 | 18.90 | 2.00 |
| 16-30 | 5.68 | 1.18 |
| 31-45 | 4.38 | 1.54 |
| 46-60 | 4.15 | 1.46 |
| 61-75 | 2.45 | 1.09 |
| 76-90 | 1.42 | 2.53 |
| 91-105 | 0.00 | 2.45 |
| 106-120 | 0.00 | 1.50 |
| IP at 91+ pitches: 5.1 | ||
| Total Innings: 73.1 |
| Pitch Count | ERA | WHIP |
|---|---|---|
| 1-15 | 21.21 | 1.71 |
| 16-30 | 6.75 | 1.13 |
| 31-45 | 1.29 | 0.86 |
| 46-60 | 7.36 | 3.55 |
| 61-75 | 3.18 | 1.06 |
| 76-90 | 2.08 | 1.15 |
| 91-105 | 0.00 | 3.43 |
| 106-120 | 0.00 | 3.00 |
| IP at 91+ pitches: 3 | ||
| Total Innings: 33.1 |
Some tidbits about the numbers, and conclusions you can draw, and other than that I leave the numbers up to you to interpret how you wish:
- The only guy on the team that doesn't start really, really slowly in the average start is Burres. He makes up for a solid 1-15 with a terrible 16-45, though.
- Guthrie might get by without good run support if he didn't stink for 30 pitches.
- Olson's good for about 75 pitches, which isn't surprising.
- There's not really enough data on Liz (33 IP) to find anything meaningful.