The B-List: 9/22-9/24

Written by Steve Buffum

In case you're still paying attention, the Tribe took two of three from the Rangers this weekend. Buff most certainly is, and comments on the weekend set in his customary Monday edition of The B-List. Buff also hits on Grady's amazing season, "Joltin" Joe Inglett's great weekend, and Garko's iron glove. Buff also cautions the Indians NOT to give up on Jhonny Peralta, and is amazingly STILL producing new insultary material on Ramon Vasquez.

When one plays a series against the Texas Rangers, it is unusual for "great starting pitching" to be the main story. This was not a very unusual series.

1) So that's what they saw in that guy!

Boy, I didn't care much for Brian Slocum's earlier stints with the Indians. I mean, what was there to like? The man's ERA was 10.57 coming into Saturday's game. His ERA was 7.71 before getting the Sptember callup, after which he was worse. His WHIP was about two-and-a-half, and hitters smacked him around to the tune of Ty Cobb (about .400). If there was one thing he did well, it was ... it was ... okay, I didn't see it. He doesn't have bubonic plague. This didn't help Ramon Vazquez, either.

However, his effort on Saturday was quite credible: although he was lifted after only 4 innings, he finished his night with a 33-pitch inning that gassed him, and there isn't any point in testing guys' stamina with extended rosters. The more important point had already been proven: that is, Brian Slocum can get major-league hitters out. Now, this isn't a guy who's going to cause a big roster controversy trying to figure out how to get him in next year's rotation or anything. But he gave up 4 hits and 2 walks in those 4 innings, and more importantly, only one run against a potent Texas lineup. One hit was a double, and he did throw a wild pitch, but I'll take that from a spot-starter I was expecting to give up at least 5 runs.

Slocum still has the fundamental problem that he can't get guys to bite on stuff out of the zone: he's walked 8 guys in 11 2/3 innings, and only struck out 6 for a truly rancid K/BB ratio of 0.75. I'm not completely sold that he will ever translate his stuff to the bigs, but he is 25 and he did throw 4 innings of 1-run spot start. Since I compared him to the baseball equivalent of "cryptosporidia," I'd be remiss not to mention that he is at least up to "vole."

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The B-List: 9/22-9/24

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