This from Joel Sherman:
"Tanaka controls his pitches and emotions, and when he gets control of an at-bat, he grabs you and doesn’t let go — think Lawrence Taylor in his prime wrapping up a quarterback. Opponents are 5-for-62 (.081) with those 37 whiffs once he reaches two strikes. The AL average is .177."
Sherman on Tanaka - (
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But outside of that potential problem, he looks like a true Ace. His splitter has been dominant.
I think kmed's point is that fans/media shouldn't expect Tanaka to finish the season with a 2.15 ERA and 0.82 WHIP. Does he look like a legit MLB starter with top of the order stuff? Sure, but it's unlikely he keeps his current "pace" up throughout the season.
Tanaka and McCann also have only 4 games working together (plus spring training) - they'll get even sharper with more starts
My biggest question is will Tanaka hold up through August/September, given he's starting every 5 days now (nice he got an extra day this time through) - nothing to indicate he won't hold up, but it's still new for him
Oh, going deep, LT I believe played for the Giants, so I don't understand your objection.