Three observations: Mattson's as dependable as they come
Three observations from the Pirates' 7-4 win over the Rays here today at LECOM Park:
• I blinked and nearly missed Isaac Mattson's inning of work. Usually that means no damage was done, so that's a good thing for the Pirates. He ended up landing six of eight pitches for strikes and generated two fly ball outs and a pop out to second. He's not a guy who is going to overpower hitters, but he gets the job done more often than not. It's not all about the velocity when it comes to being a high-leverage guy. He's proof of that. You want a dependable, consistent arm like Mattson, one who is going to do whatever it takes to get an out, in those crucial spots, too.
• The ABS challenge system was once again utilized in this one, and it's made me realize how much I hate the fact that even if the ball hits the smallest portion of the strike zone, it's considered a strike. There's been two instances now in as many days where an umpire called a ball and replay overturned it. Yesterday, it led to a strike on OneilCruz. Today, JhostynxonGarcia was on the losing end of it. Those are two guys who have had trouble with pitch recognition and selection. To me, they both made wise choices not to swing at pitches that appeared out of the zone. Replay shows that the ball was barely in the zone, so they suffer for it. It's kind of a bummer.
• The BillMazeroski tributes have been well done. There was a pregame tribute video here today, and the Orioles led fans in a moment of silence yesterday. The stenciled "Maz" tribute in the grass beyond second base here at LECOM Park was a nice touch, too. I never had the honor of meeting Mr. Mazeroski, but the stories I've heard down here speak to the elite player and human being he was.
THE ASYLUM
Three observations: Mattson's as dependable as they come
Three observations from the Pirates' 7-4 win over the Rays here today at LECOM Park:
• I blinked and nearly missed Isaac Mattson's inning of work. Usually that means no damage was done, so that's a good thing for the Pirates. He ended up landing six of eight pitches for strikes and generated two fly ball outs and a pop out to second. He's not a guy who is going to overpower hitters, but he gets the job done more often than not. It's not all about the velocity when it comes to being a high-leverage guy. He's proof of that. You want a dependable, consistent arm like Mattson, one who is going to do whatever it takes to get an out, in those crucial spots, too.
• The ABS challenge system was once again utilized in this one, and it's made me realize how much I hate the fact that even if the ball hits the smallest portion of the strike zone, it's considered a strike. There's been two instances now in as many days where an umpire called a ball and replay overturned it. Yesterday, it led to a strike on Oneil Cruz. Today, Jhostynxon Garcia was on the losing end of it. Those are two guys who have had trouble with pitch recognition and selection. To me, they both made wise choices not to swing at pitches that appeared out of the zone. Replay shows that the ball was barely in the zone, so they suffer for it. It's kind of a bummer.
• The Bill Mazeroski tributes have been well done. There was a pregame tribute video here today, and the Orioles led fans in a moment of silence yesterday. The stenciled "Maz" tribute in the grass beyond second base here at LECOM Park was a nice touch, too. I never had the honor of meeting Mr. Mazeroski, but the stories I've heard down here speak to the elite player and human being he was.
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