Dice-K had his fourth straight quality start last night, outdueling Greg Maddux to lead the Sox to a 2-1 victory over the Padres. Dice-K only gave up one run over six innings and lowered his June ERA to 1.73. Matsuzaka's performance showcased two of the problems he has been dealing with all season, his control and his propensity to give up big innings whn he gets into trouble situations. It seems that Dice-K has begun to improve his pitching in pressure situations, as shown by his ability to get out of a bases loaded jam in the 1st inning while only giving up one run. A month ago Dice-K would have given up three or four runs in that situation, but he seems to have grown more confident pitching in those scenarios. The flip side of that however, is what got Dice-K into that situation in the first place; inconsistent control. He walked five batters last night and if he is ever going to make the transition to being a true ace, that number will surely have to come down. As for the comparison, for the second week in a row Dice-K is looking like...Jeremy Bonderman.
Dice-K 2007: W%: .64
QS%: .66
WHIP: 1.30
ERA: 4.01
Salary: $6,333,333
Jeremy Bonderman 2006:W%: .63
QS%: .56
WHIP: 1.30
ERA: 4.08
Salary: $2,300,000
(Photo Credit: AP / Lenny Ignelzi)
