Odds and Ends

I made my debut on Sports Illustrated.com yesterday--sans byline, sadly--with a way abbreviated intro to Baseball Prospectus's Playoff Odds Report, which S.I. will be running periodically down the stretch. You can check that out here.

I missed Phil Hughes' first couple of innings, which meant I didn't really see the "struggling" part of his start. Nonetheless, he didn't look too sharp in the time I watched--his only strikeout of the night came before I turned on the set. Still, a win is a win, and this is two straight quality starts for the Phranchise.

The ninth inning featured Ross Ohlendorf's major league debut. He's a big, corn-fed kid, and he throws plenty hard--clocked at 95 a couple of times, IIRC. I hate his delivery, though. He throws across his body a bit, which looks uncomfortable and could mean shaky control. The 24 walks in 66 IP he had at AAA wasn't th end of the world, but it's hardly inspiring, either. For some reason, he makes me think of Jeff Nelson, which would be a fine career for him, if he can grab it.

Hideki Matsui, when he's going bad, looks like one of the very worst hitters in baseball. It's crazy to see him right now and remember how dominant he was in July. He appears to be one of those hitters--Jason Varitek is another that comes to mind--who sometimes completely lose their rhythm and their swing suffers a total breakdown, becomes all arms. Here's hoping he shakes this off soon.