Poll: Barry Zito... 50%?

by GiNgiNxbOi on Jul 5, 2008 11:04 PM PDT Comment 14 comments

So i'm listening to KNBR, and the topic of the night of course, is Barry Zito. Callers are calling in applauding and praising Zito. A lot of them are saying the old Zito's back, etc etc. Honestly, I wouldn't go that far, but I would say that along with the night at Cleveland, he's starting to show that he IS capable of putting up a good performance. Hopefully, he's turned the corner, and this is the beginning of something awesome ;)

I will say that I'm glad he got the win though, would be a shame if he didn't get the win after pitching like that. I know you could say the same for any of the other pitchers, but I think ole Barry needs it more than any of the other guys. ...confidence booster, motivation, etc etc.

Keep up that curveball, Z!

....BEAT LA!

Poll

From here on out, will Barry Zito hold a .500 win rate?

Yes. I Believe!

58 votes

No. Lucky win today.

18 votes

I don't know, but I still wouldn't risk going to one of his games.

51 votes

127 votes | Poll has closed

This FanPost is reader-generated, and it does not necessarily reflect the views of McCovey Chronicles. If the author uses filler to achieve the minimum word requirement, a moderator may edit the FanPost for his or her own amusement.

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Given the state of the offense and bullpen

.500 would be pretty damn good.

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by Bhaakon on Jul 5, 2008 11:07 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

It's obviously a fine line with Zito

He’s finally found something. But look how long it took.

Obviously, he could lose it with the snap of a…curveball.

by Moggeee on Jul 5, 2008 11:24 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

He’s going to need 16 more starts like tonight’s before I’m convinced that he’ll be OK.

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by Natto on Jul 5, 2008 11:43 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Next Year

Then you’ll have to wait until next year, since Barry won’t be getting 16 more starts this season.

If I were betting, I would bet that Barry has indeed turned the corner—although probably not permanently. Barry was actually quite good last season after making a relief appearance designed to straighten him out, but this season has made it evident that the fix was only a temporary one.

by sharksrog on Jul 6, 2008 9:19 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

His relief appearance last year was not designed to straighten him out. It was his normal day to throw between starts and he volunteered to help save the bullpen. It was not a demotion like this year (though he actually threw – weird that he only made a relief appearance when he wasn’t a member of the bullpen).

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by groug on Jul 6, 2008 11:26 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

You're right

You’re right about Barry’s relief appearance not truly being to straighten him out. In fact, he had already made one good start - and wound up taking his next turn despite the relief role. But other than the one start right before the relief appearance, Barry hadn’t pitched well - and after the relief appearance he did so.

by sharksrog on Jul 6, 2008 6:38 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

i don't know if he can keep this up...

and in fact i rather doubt it. but with the way he pitched today and the way the rest of the team rallied around him to get him that win, i think we could be in for something special. if cain can come out and roll tomorrow, i think we could be looking at a decent little winning streak for our giants. i don’t believe in luck, but i do believe in confidence and momentum, and after tonight and maybe tomorrow if cain can get us the series win over the bums, both should be in good supply in the clubhouse.

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by Smoke on the Water on Jul 5, 2008 11:52 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

You raise an interesting point. We are on a little roll with winning series.

or in the case of the Cubs, not losing them.

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by Mayor of 311 on Jul 5, 2008 11:53 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Zito starting a roll?

I think Barry has indeed started a roll. He has struck out 20 batters in his last three games, walking just six. In his first 15 outings his K/BB ratio was only 40/48. Since K/BB ratio is often a leading or at least concurrent indicator of a pitching turn, I think there is a good chance that he will at least pull off a run such as the one he made late last season.

Going from 40/48 to 20/6 looks like a big turnaround. Barry’s K/BB ratio is four times as good his last three starts as in his first 15. I don’t honestly recall that ever happening before.

by sharksrog on Jul 6, 2008 9:24 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I’m not convinced yet. Dodgers aren’t exactly an offensive juggernaut. Neither was Cleveland. But its still easily the best stuff I’ve seen him show in quite some time. And that includes his last year in Oakland. He seems to be turning the corner to at least being serviceable or capable of winning a few games. Before he seemed like an automatic loss.

The fact that he’s increased his velocity and fixed his arm slot and found his off-speed pitches etc, is very encouraging in the least.

by Hobbes2d on Jul 6, 2008 2:18 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I think Zito’s outing last night proves what we’ve talked about before with run support. Some fans have said nobody could win with the run support he gets, but myself and others have maintained that the reason he gets little or no support is because he constantly puts the team into a huge hole. Last night was a perfect example of the opposite. He pitched great, kept the team in the game and the team rallied around him. For one of his few starts, they actually thought they could win the game. I’m still not convinced though and I’m glad he won’t be pitching in the Mets’ series since I’ll be at all three games!!

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by rxmeister on Jul 6, 2008 6:08 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

On the Mark?

Mark, while Barry was actually in the game, the Giants scored all of one run for him. Are you sure they didn’t score those four runs to celebrate his removal from the game? :)

by sharksrog on Jul 6, 2008 9:26 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Kruk and Kuip made a good point a couple of Zito starts ago; that a lot of fans really want to be able to cheer for Zito. I know I do. It’s probably a combination of things:
- We’re familiar with the guy from his days across the bay
- Overall, he seems like a pretty cool dude and was always an interesting interview (though the losing and criticism here seems to have caused him to bottle himself up)
- We all know a Zito flame-out would be disastrous for the organization

So the calls to KNBR saying he’s back are probably based part on hope and part on reality.

Let’s all visualize Zito’s continued success. It’ll make us all Barry happy.

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by Goofus on Jul 6, 2008 8:18 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs