The First Line of Defense

Daisuke Matsuzaka is by no means a Yankee killer. In 2 games against the bombers, Matsuzaka has thrown 13 innings, 13 hits, 10 earned runs, 5 walks, while recording 14 strikeouts. Somehow, Daisuke, a solid bullpen, and a killer offense helped the Sox win both of those games.

Daisuke's last 3 games have resulted in Sox losses, two of them of the "tough luck" variety. He seems to have his control back in check, but the offense doesn't seem to be lining up. The embattled Yankee starting rotation (and the prospect of locking up the division) may motivate the hitters to string it together for him.

With little left of the '07 season, let's take a look at the big picture:

26 Starts
13 Wins
10 Losses
170 IP
172 K
3.72 ERA
1.27 WHIP
.240 BAA

Daisuke has eaten innings, and been effective striking out batters, while having sporadic control issues. He will surpass the Sox' individual strikeout and innings tops from last year. He's projected to have a line like 2006 Curt Schilling. While a bit pricey, the investment in Daisuke Matsuzaka should prove to be a good one if he continues to adjust and adapt to the MLB.

Big-Time Saturday

Coming off of the strongest outing of his short MLB career, Daisuke Matsuzaka will be facing off against Braves veteran John Smoltz on Saturday. Matsuzaka scattered 6 hits, no walks, and only gave up one run (on a solo homer) while striking out five in a complete game domination of the AL-Champ tigers. Daisuke's MO in Japan was having control, low numbers of walks, and giving up runs on the homer rather than a string of hits. Daisuke's return to form with the Red Sox is encouraging, as he's starting to look a lot like the pitcher they scouted in Japan.

Smoltz injured the pinky on his throwing hand Monday on a fielding play, and still may be a bit of a question mark on Saturday. Smoltz looks every bit as good as his 5-2, 3.19 era, 1.3 whip and around 8 k/9 would suggest, but he may not on his game Tomorrow.

Living Up To The Hype

108 Pitches, 74 Strikes, 7 innings, 6 Hits, 1 Walk, 1 Run, 10 Strikeouts. Daisuke Matsuzaka's Red Sox debut was very impressing. Only running into trouble at two points in the game, Daisuke seemed in control throughout the game.

What was most impressive about Matsuzaka's debut was the movement on his pitches. The KC hitters were whiffing pretty hard, and usually nowhere near where the ball ended up. As the Bill Simmons noted, it looked like Daisuke was throwing a whiffle ball on a windy day. While there was no gyroball per-se, there were a number of lively breaking pitches.

Picture from Boston Herald.