Daisuke Matsuzaka is now 5-0 with an ERA well under 3 this season. He's been making great pitches and has clearly given the Sox a chance to win every time he takes the hill. I am very pleased with the strides he has taken this year, but can't help but notice some of the ridiculous statistics he has.
1st start: 5 BB, 6 K (ND)
2nd start: 0 BB, 9 K (W)
3rd start: 4 BB, 7 K (W)
4th start: 6 BB, 2 K (W)
5th & 6th start: 2 BB, 4 K (W, ND)
7th start: 8 BB, 1 K (W)
While I am not complaining about his success, I would like to see a better BB:K ratio. Right now he has 27 walks and 33 strike outs. Those are not the numbers of a 5-0 pitcher. Last yea, Daisuke had nearly 120 more strike outs than walks. His control was much better, but his ERA was higher (4.40).
If Daisuke needs to walk many batters in order to continue his success, so be it. But when the games start to matter more, it would be better if Daisuke could prevent runners from getting a free pass on base because those runners usually end up spelling trouble.
Keywords: Boston Red Sox, Daisuke Matsuzaka
