Things We're Not Sure We Want: Jackson & Teahen

Instead of writing a post, I’m just going to post two words: Edwin Jackson. He speaks for himself, doesn’t he?

No, not really. To quote an article from the Sun-Times, Jackson “is 1-4 with a 7.24 ERA in five starts since throwing a 149-pitch no-hitter against the Tampa Bay Rays on June 25.” His stats on the year are anything but great. Not to mention that he played in the National League, so, depending on your opinion on the matter, that is also a factor. This article seems to hint that Jackson was part of a failed two-way trade and that the Sox will try to cover their tracks by saying, “Coop’ll fix him.”

It seems very possible, especially if the source you quote is any newspaper or sports news outlet around. Then again, it could simply be that the Sox would rather have a veteran pitcher give up 5 runs over 7 innings than have a rookie pitcher give up 5 runs over 4 innings and overwork the bullpen. I would like to lean toward the latter because I hope Kenny is not dumb enough to go looking for a hitter when the rotation is missing a back leg.

Cooper told the Daily Herald Jackson was tipping his pitches, there was a mention of some “mechanical things”… It’s possible that Jackson was just falling victim to low morale in a clubhouse that was on a train to nowhere. I’d like to think optimistically. So, in order to see if it’s just the D.Backs, let’s take a look at the past.

Jackson started off his career as a regular starter (With more than 7 games a year, that is) with the Rays. It was not a good year, as he finished 5-15 with a 5.76 ERA. The next year, he improved to 14-11 with a decent 4.42 ERA. The next year, he was better yet with a 13-9 record and a 3.62 ERA with the Tigers. And then, there was this year. He does slightly better against righties than lefties, and slightly better away than at home.

But, there is good news. When he has 6+ runs of support, he is 4-0 on the season. So, all we have to do is make sure that every Jackson start is a 6+ run start. (Whatever "6+" means...)

I can’t form an opinion on the trade yet, I’ll just wait for his end of year stats to speak for me. As for the deal overall? I’m just glad we didn’t bet the farm on Adam Dunn.

But more interesting than this confusing trade will be the move Ozzie and Kenny will decide on once Mark Teahen- yes, that’s right, he’ll be back- returns from his rehab assignment. Viciedo and Lillibridge are both hitting above .300. Beckham is really turning it around. Who will be the expandable one? We’ll see, I suppose!