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.

The Notorious B.I.G. M.A.P.L.E.

(Music Pun Streak #11. Simple but still applies.)

I hate bringing a topical reference to this blog, but here I go.

The 2019 New York Yankees are currently playing out the baseball equivalent of Avengers: Infinity War. Only instead of Thanos claiming half the players, it's the IL. And several big guns, like Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, Luis Severino and Aaron Hicks (to name just a few) were claimed by injuries within the first few weeks of play. As numbers piled up, the team looked doomed.

...but, it's not really about the Yankees that were lost. It's about the Yankees who were left. And there are some pretty good ones left.

For instance, Luke Voit has been lighting up the AL in the past week, hitting 8 home runs, rounding his average up to .283, and making a ton less errors at first. Upon taking the 2nd base position, DJ LeMahieu has quickly returned to his Rockies numbers, has an average over .310 and is defensively shining for us. Hell, even Gio Urshela is playing well at third, and this is a guy who's bopped around several teams lately.

And even if we're down Sevvy and Gumby, we still have Tanaka pitching beautifully, Domingo German having a breakout year, and...James Paxton. I was worried when we signed him that we wouldn't get quality starts out of Paxton, but so far it's been unfounded. The dude's been throwing fire even in the losses, and he already has 51 strikeouts. Paxton could become a steady, Mussina-esque arm for us, and with this start I'm very, very excited.

The biggest indicator of the success post-injuries this year was what I saw in Scranton last year, in their AAA unit. I saw a ton of players who were at the right point to jump into the majors, and were just being blocked by the amount of talent that was already up. Guys like Tyler Wade, Mike Ford, Clint Frazier and Thairo Estrada, who are all getting their shot this year, and for the most part impressing, would still be down in AAA any other year, but now they're proving their worth. Even Cameron Maybin, who'd be toiling in the minors either way, is getting a shot and killing it. And that makes me happy.

Yes, it'll be nice when everyone comes back, but...the Yanks are still winning games, and playing beautifully. And that's all I could ask for.

Coming Tomorrow- Shortstop for a team we all thought would be doing a lot better about now.

Why the Paxton Deal Kind of Works

So. The offseason's officially underway, and everything starts, as usual, with a nice deal by the New York Yankees.

James Paxton has joined the Bombers, in exchange for Justus Sheffield, Erik Swanson, and one other guy. At first glance, it looks as though the Yankees have given two great prospects to Seattle in exchange for a guy who has trouble staying healthy, but...it's worth more than that.

James Paxton will probably go into the JA Happ role of the steady, consistent fireballer that just wins games. Paxton will join Severino as the staff's strikeout artist, and will throw hard enough to stymie at least the Baltimore and Toronto offenses. He will also draw great crowds whenever the Yanks play in Toronto, as everyone seems to love him over there.

The main issue will be Paxton's ability to stay healthy. My dad asked the burning question: is Paxton able to give 200 innings a year? Is it closer to 175? Do we need more pitching help if that's the case. Cashman probably still wants to chase Patrick Corbin, but do we even need him now?

This is definitely an intriguing, albeit slightly predictable move. I do think it's a net win, but I worry it could end up like Carl Pavano, in that we could get a taste of him on the DL, and not much else...but seeing the quality of his recent seasons while not injured, I am staying optimistic.

Mariners Update: Running from the DL Edition

It is nearly June, and James Paxton is not injured, nor is he slumping. This is an anomaly.

Paxton has it easy, though. Dee Gordon, Mitch Haniger and Robinson Cano are all out with injuries, or, in the latter's case, possible steroid use. This is also a year where two team heroes, Nelson Cruz and Felix Hernandez, aren't playing like themselves, and their team's biggest legend just retired halfway through the month (sort of like the last Mariners legend who retired with the team).

So...while the Mariners are currently in 2nd place, in front of the Angels (currently faced with a series against the Yankees), they're partially waiting for the other shoe to drop. Yes, the team is better than expected, with a definite push from the youth movement, and FINALLY a star turn from James Paxton, but their shortcomings right now are their lack of a leader, since all three possible options are on the DL (or slumping). Kyle Seager's been with the team longest out of this current lineup, but he's forgotten how to hit for average, so by default Jean Segura's been dubbed the leader, which he's been doing fine with.

A helpful move, though, was yesterday's trade for Alex Colome and Denard Span. The former will be a nice setup man for Edwin Diaz, one of the best closers in baseball right now, while the latter will be a nice source of leadership and a trusted, surging presence in the outfield. It definitely helps the cause.

I'm not sure how much longer the Ms will be in 2nd place, but I doubt they'll be completely out of the race anytime soon.

Coming Tomorrow- Surprise! This guy's team is now in first, after the previous 1st place team completely fell apart. Now he's got to help them earn it.

...THEY'RE in Last???

I mean...they've got a guy with a 1.39 ERA, two rookies who're blazing through the league, and Nelson Cruz finally deciding to hit again. Yes, they're uneven, but with so much going for them, you'd think the Mariners would be higher than last.

I saw James Paxton pitch against the Pirates, and on this particular night the Pirates clobbered the hell out of him. He didn't have his best stuff, and he was dominated by Marte and McCutchen and those guys. So imagine my surprise when, top of the season, James Paxton is on a ton of the Leaders charts. Like...I thought he was crap!

Whatever he's been doing has been working- he's got a low ERA and a ton of strikeouts right off the bat. He hasn't had many bad outings thus far, and he's currently anchoring the dilapidated Mariners rotation, in the absence of an alarmingly weak Felix Hernandez. In a last-place team, you need a few sources of hope, and Paxton's performance thus far is a sign that maybe this won't be a perennial last place squad this season.

Look...Taylor Motter and Mitch Haniger have come from nowhere (read: trades) and are having amazing rookie seasons. Jean Segura, Robinson Cano, Kyle Seager and Nelson Cruz are FINALLY hitting.  Even if a lot of the lineup is slumping, and even if the rotation's looking dire, all hope's not lost if what's surging currently for the M's continues to surge.

Coming Tomorrow- Strikeout artist for a surprisingly wonderful NL West squad.