Melancons Debut

Written by Greg Fertel | 27 April 2009

I'm going to drop the daily minor league stats for now, because they take time that I don't really have, and there are other places where you can get the same reports. I'll be looking at players on a weekly basis now, which I think gives you a better picture anyway. On to Mark Melancon:

How could you not be impressed with his first inning. I noted that he gets through innings very quickly, but still, a five pitch inning was nice to see even though I am not a fan of pitchers "pitching to contact." His second inning was not as good. He started out 2-0 on Youkilis and then gave up a single. He then proceeded to walk and hit a batter. Impressively, he battled and got out of the inning unscathed, giving him two shutout innings to start his career.

All we've heard about Melancon was how he has such good work ethic and has a great demeanor, and he showed it there. I have always thought this is a guy who could take over for Mo when he retires, and his first appearance showed that he does not buckle under pressure. Take that for what its worth, but it was refreshing to see a reliever with the stuff to get out of jams.

When Melancon gets more innings under his belt, I'll be sure to do more analysis on him, but for now this will have to suit you.