Barry Zito (1 Viewer)

[pigskin pimp]

It's about dang time Zito put up some numbers. 6 innings of shutout ball for the win.

I nabbed Zito at what I thought was a bargain ($14) at the auction (stud ps go for at least $20 in this thing).

Anyway, I know Zito's a slow starter, so I didn't put a lot of stock into his first couple of games. But I'm wondering when pitchers switch leagues, it usually favors the pitcher, correct?

The batters have never seen his stuff, so you would think that the P would have the advantage.

On the flip side, Zito doesn't know the NL players, either. Probably still studying the batter's habits.

I know there's studies on this, but I'm lazy, and I know one of you will have the answer of who has the advantage: A pitcher in a new league or the batter facing the pitcher.

I'm on the fence whether Zito is a sell/ or a buy player.

Thoughts?

 

[Scott Utah Boyles]

It's about dang time Zito put up some numbers. 6 innings of shutout ball for the win.I nabbed Zito at what I thought was a bargain ($14) at the auction (stud ps go for at least $20 in this thing).Anyway, I know Zito's a slow starter, so I didn't put a lot of stock into his first couple of games. But I'm wondering when pitchers switch leagues, it usually favors the pitcher, correct?The batters have never seen his stuff, so you would think that the P would have the advantage. On the flip side, Zito doesn't know the NL players, either. Probably still studying the batter's habits.I know there's studies on this, but I'm lazy, and I know one of you will have the answer of who has the advantage: A pitcher in a new league or the batter facing the pitcher.I'm on the fence whether Zito is a sell/ or a buy player.Thoughts?

Pitchers tend to do better when switching to the NL, because they get to face the opposing pitcher in the lineup instead of the DH. BaseballHQ has done some studies where it shows pitchers tend to do better when switching from the AL to the NL because of this, and tend to perform a little worse when switching from the NL to the AL. Pitchers may have an advantage their first time around the new league, too. But after that they lose that advantage.Having said that, Zito is a sell player, IMO. Look at his numbers over the last few years. His K/9 has been declining. He hasn't thrown 180 Ks since 2002. His ERA and WHIP aren't what they were 5 years ago. His WHIP from last year was not good, and his ERA was just a little above average. Zito is not a stud anymore. Sell.

 

[RedRaiders]

I agree with SUB - pretty spot on.

 

[Yankee23Fan]

I kept Zito for what was a 5th round pick. I'm thinking that was decent value in my 10 teamer. I'm not too worried about him yet, but the above post about his declining stuff is spot on.

I'm still in a holding pattern when it comes to moves. Beginning of May is probably when I will size up my team and correct the mistakes of the draft and try to build for the playoffs.