Return of the Big Maple

 

Chris Sale being injured, that I could have predicted. Corey Kluber being injured, I could have guessed that as well. James Paxton...NOT being injured? That's what's shocking me so far.

Because this has sort of been Paxton's thing over the years. Show up, pitch beautifully, get injured. I've actually seen him pitch twice in person, once with Seattle and once with le Yanks, and when he's on and healthy, there's no issue. He strikes out everybody, he has a career 3.50 ERA, a career .646 W/L ratio, and he's got a no-hitter pitched in his native Canada. But pretty much every year, he'd miss like 3 or 4 starts due to some throwing issue. The Yanks got one glorious season out of Paxton, where he made 150 innings and won 15 games, and then the following year his arm gave out and kept him from consistent MLB work for the next 3 seasons. 

The Sox signing him to a two-year deal going into 2022 was ballsy, because they wouldn't be sure how much of that contract he'd be healthy for, like the Padres' Mike Clevinger deal and the Nats' ongoing quest to find out if Stephen Strasburg will ever pitch again. Sure enough, the Big Maple missed all of last season and missed the first two months of 2023. When the Sox finally brought him up, I figured that either Paxton would show up or the same thing that had happened in the prior seasons, Paxton pitching a few games and struggling and then winding up on the IL again, would happen yet again. It's happened with so many hard-throwing guys, like Jacob deGrom, Chris Sale...Stephen Strasburg. I just assumed we'd heard the last of him.

Paxton has been one of the Sox' best pitchers so far this season, along with Brayan Bello. That's a fun combo at the top of that rotation- the rookie who's just being thrust into greatness alongside the 34-year-old who hasn't pitched consistently since before the pandemic. The Sox' rotation still isn't much right now, but with Bello's 3.04 ERA and Paxton's 2.73 ERA, with a 5-1 record, they at least have two more trusted starters than a lot of teams. The A's barely have one. It's a little concerning that the space in the rotation after Bello, Paxton, Kutter Crawford and Nick Pivetta is currently filled by a bunch of question marks since Houck, Sale, Whitlock and Kluber are all hurt, but...the Sox are known for having a deceptively strong farm system, maybe someone horrifyingly good will be up soon.

I just hope Paxton stays healthy and consistent. He's only pitched poorly when he's been struggling with pain, and he's been pitching well this year. I hope he keeps it up.

Coming Tonight: It's coming up on a year since this now-legendary Nationals hitter was brought up.