Jeff, once again I wholeheartedly agree. But I think I should be questioning myself if I didn’t!!! Stats are great measuring tools. Even the balls in play are helpful, but, while still holding onto some of the old school I guess (happens when you are old!), are limited in their ability to tell the entire picture. They speak nothing of an ump squeezing pitches or an ump who is in a generous mood. They don’t explain to you if that last hit was a metal bat single off the handle. There is a world difference between a guy crushing a ball down the line or throwing the bat on the ball for a blooper double as yesterday. Stats on the pitcher don’t show that the sequence of pitches he was given might have been predictable. Or if the wind was blowing out in a good old Kansas storm. You know the myriad of possibilities. Indeed, I agree that there is more to pitching. I guess that is part of what makes baseball fun.
You are right on about the K/BB ratio….thus I liked right away DiPoto stressing to control the zone. I have always believed that and know that the pitcher who can consistently get ahead in counts, in time, will see the best results. Sometimes I think scouts have one brain cell controlled by the radar. Thankfully there are guys like DiPoto who get it. Pitching is more than velocity alone but a combination of many factors. Jeremy has a great mind for the game but, like any strong competitor, wants badly to do well each time that sometimes that other factors besides the scoreboard lose their importance. But it is a long haul grind so it is fun…and frustrating in one! Baseball!!!!