Edwin Jackson sent to mechanic, passes inspection
I'm buying Edwin Jackson to bounce back in the last two months of the season.
Well, maybe I'm forced to, at least for my KFFL Baseball AL Experts League team, which acquired Jackson in last week's flurry of post-trade deadline waiver acquisitions.
My starting pitching consisted of Fausto Carmona, Javier Vazquez, Brett Cecil, Kevin Slowey, Rich Harden and Doug Fister (whom I picked up the previous week out of desperation) - not a terrible single-universe staff, but not jaw-dropping. Buy low much?
Jackson has the talent to push this group over the top.
I started him in our weekly lineup. Wednesday's result? He allowed nine hits, but some of them were early-game dribblers and infield hits, and one smacked off his person when it was hit back to the mound. Elsewhere? Six K's, one walk, one earned run in seven strong innings.
Even more promising? Sixty-nine of his 95 pitches (72.6 percent) were strikes. A nice, fresh 1.29 AL ERA for 2010.
Tim, it was one game. Relax.
Sure, the Detroit Tigers lineup has received a DL-induced vasectomy, but this is one step closer to Jackson erasing his NL disaster. Plus, Jackson beat one of his old teams!
That's right, a switch from Chase Field to U.S. Cellular Field - both launching pads - and from pitchers to DHs will turn his season around.
Tim, I know it's Friday, but put the bottle down.
This is root beer, Debbie Downer. Just listen. I used to do a shot for each of Jackson's walks, and that led to ... anyway, Jackson succeeded pre-fatigue in 2009 under Rick Knapp with the Detroit Tigers. In Arizona? They couldn't fix Cy Young. Jackson now has Don Cooper, who has already worked with Jake Peavy (pre-injury) and Gavin Floyd to correct flaws.
Cooper wasted no time re-aligning Jackson's gears. Before that, though, he let Jackson in on a secret: The ChiSox knew the hurler was tipping pitches against them late last year. Humbling him, then bringing him into the trust circle was a good start to an education.
Maybe I should wake up early for these lessons. Cooper seems enthusiastic over working with Jackson:
"I was excited, looking forward to it all yesterday," Cooper said. "Last night I was thinking about it. This morning, when I woke up, I was thinking about it. I'm even more excited now because the process has begun - and the sideline we just had.
"It went very, very well. I can't remember how long ago I was this excited about a sideline, about a bullpen."
Coop sold me. I audited the class during E-Jax's first exam on ESPN's Wednesday night broadcast, via Rick Sutcliffe.
For most of Jackson's time in Arizona, his back leg was collapsing during the start of his delivery. This caused him to lose momentum and the downward plane from his pitches, which left a lot of his offerings either flat in the strike zone or wildly outside of the black.
During his White Sox debut, the righty's back leg more often than not was firm, standing straight - vital to creating a base from which to propel his power pitching style.
Jackson has seen an increase in ground balls this year, and his fly-ball rate has tanked considerably. His HR/FB has stayed the same over the years, regardless of his home park, and he still hovers around a serviceable 7.00 K/9.
Most importantly, his newest mechanical alteration should help him regain his control, something the Diamondbacks' inept arms coaches let slip away, and get more mileage out of his high-90s gas.
Oh, and he'll like his new entourage. "Chad Who? Aaron What's-his-name? Bobby, Matt, J.J. and Sergio seem like good dudes." More cries of "VIC-TO-RY!"
Jackson lines up to visit the Baltimore Orioles, face the downtrodden Tigers again at home this time, and travel to the Kansas City Royals. Sign me up.
Jackson's deep league value has the perfect combo of risk, upside and talent. Just don't say I didn't warn you.
