Zito lacking more than wins
Posted: Thursday, August 16, 2007 3:02 PM
As Giants manager Bruce Bochy made his way to the mound on July 22 in Milwaukee, I found myself stunned and screaming at the television.
Barry Zito was on the mound -- the pitcher San Francisco signed to a $126 million deal to be the post-Barry-Bonds face of the franchise. It was the sixth inning and Zito had settled into a smooth flow after a rough first inning. However, the Brewers had loaded the bases. The batter was Rickie Weeks, a .222 hitter on that day. The game meant a ton to the Brewers, ensconced in a pennant race, but little to the last-place Giants.
The moment called for leadership. Bochy had to remind Zito that the left-hander is the centerpiece of the Giants' rotation, and he needed to show that to his teammates by getting out of the jam. Zito should have told his manager that he wanted to stay on the mound. Instead, Bochy took the ball from a passive Zito and summoned Vinnie Chulk from the bullpen.
Let’s recap while I recover from being agitated yet again by this surreal scenario. Barry Zito, he of the biggest pitching contract in recent years, is removed from the game for VINNIE CHULK! This is not to rag on Chulk, who is trying simply to survive in the bigs, but VINNIE CHULK! In a tight spot a $126 million supposed ace of the staff was removed for a marginal major league reliever? What this move told me was that Bochy felt Chulk rather than Zito was more capable of retiring Weeks, who is no Prince Fielder.
The only thing more shocking than my reaction to this move was the lack of outrage in the Bay Area. Yes, Bay Area fans are mellow about their sports, but this move should have registered. What are fans supporting the Giants to the tune of over three million in paid attendance supposed to think?
And what message was sent to the other Giants? How are they supposed to react to their high-priced star pitcher leaving in the sixth in the middle of a jam he should have met head on and tried to pitch out of?
Here’s my last point on this: We haven’t heard any passion from Zito. No disappointment, anger, or sadness. Nothing. Just the normal empty statements about regrouping and turning things around. I want to see Zito as a leader.
After the All-Star break, the Giants hosted the Dodgers in a weekend series. In San Francisco, the Giants portrayed the series as their last-gasp attempt to be involved in a race. Did Zito pitch? No, he needed time to “regroup.” What? November is when you regroup. July is when you pitch, especially at Zito’s rate of over $300,000 per start. I wanted to hear Zito demand to pitch.
Others have barraged me with the take that Bochy needs to win games and Zito is the fifth-best starter on the team. They say that Bochy needs to prove to the other players that he is single-minded on winning. Well, guess what? There aren’t more than two players (Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum) who should be around the Giants as long as Zito will. It's a good bet Bochy won't be around that long. So someone better make sure that the investment in a struggling, soft-tossing, left-hander has a payoff. Someone better be in charge of not allowing the franchise's “new face” to be treated like a fuzzy-cheeked rookie while the young kids Cain and Lincecum pitch on the front line.
Here are the cold-hearted numbers on Zito, who is pitching in the lighter-hitting NL and in a pitcher-friendly home ballpark. His home-road splits are not noteworthy: ERA (4.68 home/5.52 road), and OBA (.264 home/.258 road). Translation: He has been mediocre everywhere.
Zito, who was supposed to be the bastion of durability (that’s what we were told at his signing), has pitched more than seven innings TWICE, exactly seven innings five times (once since July 1 or the “regrouping”), and less than six innings 11 times. Those who watched Zito carefully in the AL say he no longer challenges hitters with the fastball, allowing them better cuts at his curve/change combination. He absolutely throws too many balls, running up walk totals and pitch counts.
Is the Zito deal destined for the Mike Hampton bin of disastrous contracts given to pitchers? Not necessarily. I watched Tom Glavine make needed changes that propelled him to 300 wins. Glavine had to break a 15-year pattern of successful pitching to throw his fastball inside and reintroduce a curve. Zito has as much fastball as Glavine and already owns a good curve. So why can’t Zito be like Glavine in the remaining years of his mega-contract? That’s what the Giants have to ask. That and why can’t he get Rickie Weeks out?
