Last piece of new BIg Three owns his debut
Written by Heegos, Tuesday June 02 2009
Billy Beane has done it again.
The Oakland A's rolled out another young pitcher on Tuesday, and Vin Mazzaro did what they all do: he did work.
Mazzaro, 21, made his major league debut with 6.1 scoreless innings, and allowed only three hits in a 5-0 win over the Chicago White Sox. Though he did walk four batters, his K:BB ratio in the minors (44:17 in 56.2 innings in AAA this year) suggests the walks were just jitters.
Fellow 21-year olds Trevor Cahill and Brett Anderson started the season in the starting rotation, even though scouts touted Mazzaro as having the best stuff. His "stuff" did not disappoint. Mazzaro's fastball showed great movement and consistently hit 94-95 mph on the radar gun. His slider showed good break, and he even broke it out on left-handed hitters after his first trip through the lineup. Though he didn't throw the curveball, Mazzaro used his changeup as he became more comfortable on the mound.
Though he gave up a hit to the first batter he faced, and allowed Scott Podsednik to steal second, Mazzaro picked him off. He was able to get out of bases loaded jams early in the game, showing the composure of a seasoned veteran.
Mazzaro wasn't without fault in his debut. His four walks were cause for concern. Mazzaro seemed unable to put hitters away once he got to two strikes. A couple of his walks came on 3-2 counts because he couldn't go to a pitch other than his fastball, and anything near the plate would have been crushed.
Mazzaro, Cahill and Anderson definitely represent the future of the Athletics. While Cahill and Anderson continue to struggle through their first season, the three young'uns show tons of promise. Even during Spring Training, Jason Giambi compared the three to Oakland's former Big Three of Mark Mulder, Barry Zito and Tim Hudson.
Baseball fans will remember that Oakland rode those three young arms to four straight playoff appearances in 2000-2003. I'm not saying that will happen over the next four seasons, but the lively arms of the New Three can only be a sign of hope for the hapless A's.
Now, if Billy can only learn to develop some offense…
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