Written by Greg Fertel
|
14 July 2007
Joba Chamberlain and the Trenton Thunder are being televised tonight on Comcast. For those of us who aren't Comcast subscribers, you can watch the game on the CN8
website
This could also be a place to discuss his start for those of us who are interested, and maybe I will write up some observations.
1st inning: Blows away the leadoff hitter on 3 straight fastballs, and he looked completely overmatched. The 2nd batter flew out to Colin Curtis in left after Joba showed a nice curve earlier in the count. The 3rd hitter grounded out to Alberto Gonzalez. So far so good. 1 IP, no hits, no walks, no runs, and 1 strikeout.
I notice Juan Miranda is not in the lineup. Could he be moving up to Scranton? Or maybe he's just getting a night off.
2nd inning: The leadoff batter lined a single to left, after going down 1-2 to Joba's fastball and slider. The next batter hit a soft fly ball to Bronson Sardinha. The 3rd batter, Chip Cannon, lined a hard single off Joba's foot, but he shook it off and stayed in. The next hitter struck out swinging on a high fastball, whiffing on a nice slider a few pitches before. The 5th batter grounded out to Gonzalez weakly, taking a check-swing against a slider. Through 2, 2 hits, no runs, no walks, 2 strikeouts.
3rd inning: The #9 hitter fell behind 0-2 on a curve and a heater before flying out weakly to Sardinha. The next guy struck out looking on a 96 MPH fastball along the inside corner (maybe a little inside). The 3rd batter bounced out weakly to 2B Gabe Lopez. In 3 innings, 2 hits, no walks, no runs, and 3 strikeouts.
4th inning: The leadoff bounced out weakly to Lopez, and was retired easily. The second batter struck out swinging on a hard slider away, after whiffing at some high heat earlier in the at bat. The 3rd hitter struck out swinging on a slider in the dirt, and he looked completely fooled. In 4 innings, Joba has thrown 51 pitches, with 40 strikes against 11 balls, a great ratio. Still just 2 hits allowed and no walks or runs allowed, with 5 strikeouts.
5th inning: A funny TV moment happened when Trenton announcers zoomed in on an attractive blond woman in the crowd, and then zoomed out to include the considerably less attractive man sitting with her. The announcers wondered what that girl was doing with that guy, saying what was presumably going through everyone's mind. But now back to baseball. Chip Cannon flew out to Colin Curtis in the left-field corner. The 2nd and 3rd batters both struck out swinging on sliders (I think) outside. Through 5, still no runs, 2 hits, no walks and 7 strikeouts. He has retired 11 straight.
6th inning: The leadoff hitter walked, after Joba went ahead 0-2 on 2 sliders. He just missed on some very close outside pitches, and Joba looked upset after allowing the free pass. The next batter whiffed on an inside slider. The announcers mentioned that lefties are hitting under .100 against Joba, and that slider in on the hands explains why. The next batter grounded into a double play. Through 6 innings, 2 hits, 1 walk, and 8 strikeouts. Will he be back for the 7th?
For those of you who haven't been watching, Joba has been doing this funny routine between innings where he wraps a towel very tightly around his pitching arm. The announcers seem very amused by this, and the camera shows it almost every innings.
7th inning: The TV cameras pointed out a Red Sox scout in the stands, no doubt telling his employers to watch out for Joba.
The leadoff hitter whiffed on a high fastball around the letters. The next batter grounded out to the Attorney General, who made a nice throw to record the out. The 3rd hitter singled to left field on a breaking ball inside. So far, Joba has thrown 88 pitches, with 64 strikes against 24 balls. The 3rd batter flew out to center to end the inning, and possibly Joba's outing. Tonight, Joba has thrown 90 pitches, with 66 strikes against 24 balls. 7 innings, 3 hits, 1 walk, no runs and 9 strikeouts.
Joba's night is done after 7 innings, and he looked very impressive. He got ahead on most hitters, throwing his fastball, slider, and curveball for strikes. He recorded most of his strikeouts on high fastballs and sliders, and he showed good control of both pitches. I didn't see him throw any changeups, which surprises me, but his other secondary offerings looked pretty good. Another dominant outing for Joba, and there are definitely more to come.
