oliver perez

by baseballgg24 on Jun 24, 2006 6:06 PM EDT Comment 5 comments

this guy was a flat out stud back in 2004, putting up a sub 3 ERA and along with a fantastic k rate. He also did all this at the tender age of 22. Since then hes had almost one and a half terrible seasons capped off by his start last night agaisnt the Dodgers. He almost walking one guy an inning, and his ERA is in the 6's. Can this guy get back to the way he was in 2004? Should he be sent back to the minors or should he be allowed to keep getting battered at the major league level? Do you think the Pirates would consider trading him and would there even be a market for him?

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velocity and control

perez's velocity is no longer in the mid-90s, where it was in 2004. he is throwing more mid to high-80s. couple his average velocity with the control issues that have plagued his entire career and you have the oliver perez of today. it is unfortunate because he could have been the NL's answer to kazmir and liriano. opposing hitters even called him a smaller randy johnson due to his electric slider. perhaps he can become a lefty specialist; despite all his troubles, left handers are only hitting .200 against him this season.

by doofusme on Jun 24, 2006 6:37 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Control, control, control

He seems like he's had an arm injury that has adversely affected his control. Also, the league knows his stuff better (and his fastball has come back to earth) and lay off of the crap a lot more than they did before.

I still think he's got ace potential if he makes an adjustment. His slider is still among the nastiest pitches in the majors...he's regained a little velocity and he's still average to above-average in that department. If he can adjust to his new stuff and find some control (or if he's injured and gets healthy) he's got a chance to be an ace again.

by limozeen on Jun 24, 2006 9:21 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs