Ian Kennedy’s Start Yesterday
Via the Times:
“This is not the Ian Kennedy that we all saw last year, and we need to find a way to get him back there,” said Manager Joe Girardi. “When he made a mistake it was a bad mistake and they didn’t miss. Sometimes those are singles. Today they were homers and doubles.”
“I felt like I had the right mind-set and I was attacking guys, but they’re a very good team,” Kennedy said. “Mentally, I think I’m going in the right direction.”
Know what bothered me the most about Kennedy yesterday? His mound presence.
When Ian hit Ben Zobrist with that pitch in the third, Kennedy had a reaction like “Oh, I give up. Here we go again. Woe is me.” It was like someone sucked the air out of his body. Next, he walked Akinori Iwamura and it got worse. Dave Eiland saw it too - and quickly went out to the mound. Granted, Ian worked out of that jam as best that he could - but, the message was clear…he’s somewhat shell-shocked on the mound. For a guy who needs to be confident in his pitches, as he doesn’t have off-the-charts stuff, that’s never a good thing.
Last season, Kennedy (when he came up) attacked hitters - much like Matt Garza did to the Yankees the other night…doing it with a look on his mug that said “OK, go ahead, try and hit this!”
Yesterday’s start tells me that Ian Kennedy still has the same problem that he had before he went to the minors to figure it out. And, the issue is in his head. He doesn’t trust his stuff and has become fearful of big league hitters. Somehow, the Yankees need to figure out a way to get him back to where he was last year. If it means giving his phone number to Jim Fannin, at this point, could it hurt?
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Kennedy just doesn’t have great stuff. Period. We can sugarcoat this anyway we want. To compare him to a young Mussina is a joke. The young Mussina threw 95 and had a nasty knuckle curve. He was a stud pretty much from the beginning.
I don’t understand how you can use the example of when he hit Zobrist, saying he looked rattled, but then he bounced back from a bases-loaded no-one situation to only give up one run. He DIDN’T fold there — he got tough and only gave up a run on a flyball (which Johnny Damon couldn’t even throw to the infield dirt on a fly).
Kennedy didn’t look rattled at all to me yesterday. He made one really bad mistake — that high slider to Riggans. His line looks ugly, but he was better than his line. I don’t think Kennedy lacks confidence or is intimidated by the situation he’s in. Part of it is what Joel said — people need to remember who and what Kennedy is, which is a four or five starter. He’s not going to be brilliant every time out.
And when you throw 92-94 like Garza does, it’s easy to say “here it is, hit it” than when you’re throwing 86-89 like Kennedy. (I know you mentioned, um, facial expressions in that comparison, but Kennedy doesn’t have the stuff to have that attitude.)
baileywalk - go back and watch the video. After that HBP, Kennedy looked like he was going to cry. And, I think that led to the walk that followed.
Yes, he got out of it. But, I think it must have been something that Eiland said after the BB.
And, that’s my point…he’s so shocked, now, that when things go bad, he starts to fold, if left on his own, because he’s expecting the worst.
His head needs baby-sitting now…
Well, I respect your opinion and maybe I didn’t notice his expression, but I think Eiland would have come out if it was Pettitte or Mussina facing the same situation. I think the important thing is that he came back so strong to get out of the jam.
go back and watch the video. After that HBP, Kennedy looked like he was going to cry. And, I think that led to the walk that followed.
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I saw that, and I agree…just to throw that out there
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Well, I respect your opinion and maybe I didn’t notice his expression, but I think Eiland would have come out if it was Pettitte or Mussina facing the same situation. I think the important thing is that he came back so strong to get out of the jam.
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i dont deny that he might have come out for petitte or moose in that situation, kennedy really looked like he got the wind knocked out of him