If I could play the role of apologist for a few more minutes, I'd point out that once again Jason Frasor pitched fine. The pitch he threw to Teahen wasn't quite as bad as he described, but it wasn't much better.
Worse than the pitch itself was whom he threw it to. Mark Teahen is a lot of things—Canadian not among them—and opposite field power threat counts as one of his skills. Teahen hit 8 opposite field home runs last, 7 the year before. Mark Teahen, in fact, is an excellent opposite field hitter, which makes Frasor's belt high offering that much worse.
Again, not terrible but not great. A little higher or a little further outside and I think he's fine. But it wasn't and now "everyone" believes Jason Frasor should lose his job. And he probably will. There are too many worthy candidates waiting behind him to pick up some cool counting stats that agents love so much.
One area of Frasor's game worth watching is his whiffs, or lack thereof. In 5 outings this year, Frasor's only missed 4 bats. In 88 pitches. Quite early to sound the alarm bells, and missing tonnes of bats was never The Sausage King's thing, but it's still worth watching. Frasor living and dying on the outside corner coupled with his pained, distressed facial expressions don't instill a great deal of confidence.
The Fastball Travails of the Toronto Blue Jays
Will be an interesting subplot during this 2010 season. Early on, Jake Peavy fed the Jays a steady diet of heaters and sinkers, many of which they sent flying in the opposite direction. Later in the game, however, the fastballs increased in pedigree and the swinging strikes a-followed.
Matt Thornton, who might be the best left-handed reliever in the American League, threw fastballs in places you can't hit them, even if know it is coming. (And want it to!) Sergio Santos came in firing smoke before deftly switching gears to the slider. The Jays were so geared up they whiffed like madmen at the 85 mph spinner. Bobby Jenks and J.J. Putz may not be who they once were, but there hard-throwing ways and scintilla of offspeed control took care of the Jays through the late innings.
Will it continue? It might be lazy and convenient of me to say so, but the Jays can be a powerful offensive team but they can also be an easy team to pitch. One junkballing lefty or control specialist might keep them tied in knots for days. God help them when they have to face Wakefield.
Opening Day - Spectacle.
Read my thoughts about Opening Day over at The Blue Jay Hunter. Because Ian's awesome and works hard for his money. I very well could be bitter because I was home liveblogging while everyone else got to drink beer. Not that I was home liveblogging in lieu of drinking beer, I would've been home anyway. If anyone ever asks you if you want to have kids; say no. Then turn a chair upside-down and jump on each leg crotch first. You'll thank me eventually.
Pitch F/X data courtesy of Brooks Baseball
