The Greatest Poster Alive
09-18-2004, 02:42 PM
Cy Young should be a given for sensational Santana
Associated Press
[/url]http://view.atdmt.com/PMT/view/spnxxsky00100127pmt/direct/01/
MINNEAPOLIS -- We're required to alert AP headquarters when a pitcher has a no-hitter alive after five innings so an advisory can be prepared.
Had one Tuesday night in fact, so I picked up the phone.
"We've got a no-hitter here in White Sox-Twins, no score, headed into the sixth."
No hesitation from the voice on the other end.
"Santana?"
You sure would think so, wouldn't you? After all, this guy has dominated like nobody else in recent memory. But it was actually Chicago's [url="http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6168"]Freddy Garcia (http://<img%20src=/), not Minnesota's lights-out left-hander, who started the game with five hitless innings.
Santana wasn't far behind, though, and he finished with a seven-inning, two-hit, no-run, one-walk, seven-strikeout performance despite a not-so-sharp changeup. Garcia, a pretty fair pitcher himself, unraveled and didn't survive the sixth.
It's gotten to be so routine, seeing Santana top the opposing team's ace with some scary good stat line in the box score. He has all but sealed up the American League earned-run average race, with a 2.76 mark that's just a hair higher than Arizona's Randy Johnson (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=4288) -- the only other pitcher in the majors who has more strikeouts than him.
And Johnson, remember, gets to throw to his mostly weak-swinging colleagues two or three times a game, while Santana must face designated hitters like David Ortiz (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=5909), Travis Hafner (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6980) and Erubiel Durazo.
His ERA has decreased in 20 consecutive starts, and he's won 11 straight decisions -- one shy of the Twins' record of 12 set by Scott Erickson in 1991 and matched by Brad Radke (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=5337) in 1997.
Those guys weren't nearly as superior as Santana has been, though. The only hurler manager Ron Gardenhire can think of who was this hard to hit in the modern era is Dwight Gooden -- a teammate of his on the New York Mets (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=nym).
In 1984, Gooden broke baseball's record for strikeouts by a rookie.
"When a runner would get in scoring position," Gardenhire said, "it was like another level he got to."
Gooden had a high leg kick, similar to San Francisco Giants (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=sfo) great Juan Marichal, and if he ever got in trouble he'd just blow a fastball by a helpless hitter.
What sets Santana apart is his ability to throw any one of his three dominant pitches -- fastball, slider and changeup -- at any time in the count, because he locates them so well.
"That's pretty hard to duplicate," Gardenhire said.
The Twins distributed buttons on Tuesday featuring his mug shot, surrounded by the words "SANTANA FOR PRESIDENT" -- except the word president was crossed out and replaced by "CY YOUNG."
Santana had surgery to remove a bone spur from his elbow in the offseason, and he got off to a sluggish start this spring. That's the only thing keeping this award from already being decided.
Oakland's Mark Mulder (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6393) has a 17-4 record, but he's been fading. Pedro Martinez (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=4875)'s numbers aren't what they used to be, leaving his Boston teammate Curt Schilling (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=4267) as the only other legitimate competitor.
Schilling's ERA is more than a half-run higher, and he's got only one more win than Santana. Schilling's good-guy reputation will do nothing to hurt his chances, and same goes for his Fenway Park office. Plus, the perception that Schilling was overshadowed by Johnson during their days together with the Diamondbacks could add a vote or two for the veteran. Fair or not, some writers might figure that the 25-year-old Santana will win many more awards in his career and decide to go with the 37-year-old Schilling.
The key to this could come down to the Yankees. Santana's final start is scheduled in New York the last week in September, and Schilling is supposed to pitch at home against his team's biggest rival next Sunday.
They'll probably disagree on the East Coast, but regardless of what happens in those final outings -- the hardware has to go to Santana. He's just been simply too good. Opponents are batting .193 against him. That only happens with relievers -- or on video games.
"A lot of people are talking about me," Santana said. "I don't put that on my mind. All I do is try to have fun every time I go out there."
That's probably the most refreshing thing about this -- his attitude.
"I think Johan is trying to do what we're trying to do," Gardenhire said, "and that's win the division. That's where his focus should be. All the other stuff is secondary."
Associated Press
[/url]http://view.atdmt.com/PMT/view/spnxxsky00100127pmt/direct/01/
MINNEAPOLIS -- We're required to alert AP headquarters when a pitcher has a no-hitter alive after five innings so an advisory can be prepared.
Had one Tuesday night in fact, so I picked up the phone.
"We've got a no-hitter here in White Sox-Twins, no score, headed into the sixth."
No hesitation from the voice on the other end.
"Santana?"
You sure would think so, wouldn't you? After all, this guy has dominated like nobody else in recent memory. But it was actually Chicago's [url="http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6168"]Freddy Garcia (http://<img%20src=/), not Minnesota's lights-out left-hander, who started the game with five hitless innings.
Santana wasn't far behind, though, and he finished with a seven-inning, two-hit, no-run, one-walk, seven-strikeout performance despite a not-so-sharp changeup. Garcia, a pretty fair pitcher himself, unraveled and didn't survive the sixth.
It's gotten to be so routine, seeing Santana top the opposing team's ace with some scary good stat line in the box score. He has all but sealed up the American League earned-run average race, with a 2.76 mark that's just a hair higher than Arizona's Randy Johnson (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=4288) -- the only other pitcher in the majors who has more strikeouts than him.
And Johnson, remember, gets to throw to his mostly weak-swinging colleagues two or three times a game, while Santana must face designated hitters like David Ortiz (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=5909), Travis Hafner (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6980) and Erubiel Durazo.
His ERA has decreased in 20 consecutive starts, and he's won 11 straight decisions -- one shy of the Twins' record of 12 set by Scott Erickson in 1991 and matched by Brad Radke (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=5337) in 1997.
Those guys weren't nearly as superior as Santana has been, though. The only hurler manager Ron Gardenhire can think of who was this hard to hit in the modern era is Dwight Gooden -- a teammate of his on the New York Mets (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=nym).
In 1984, Gooden broke baseball's record for strikeouts by a rookie.
"When a runner would get in scoring position," Gardenhire said, "it was like another level he got to."
Gooden had a high leg kick, similar to San Francisco Giants (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=sfo) great Juan Marichal, and if he ever got in trouble he'd just blow a fastball by a helpless hitter.
What sets Santana apart is his ability to throw any one of his three dominant pitches -- fastball, slider and changeup -- at any time in the count, because he locates them so well.
"That's pretty hard to duplicate," Gardenhire said.
The Twins distributed buttons on Tuesday featuring his mug shot, surrounded by the words "SANTANA FOR PRESIDENT" -- except the word president was crossed out and replaced by "CY YOUNG."
Santana had surgery to remove a bone spur from his elbow in the offseason, and he got off to a sluggish start this spring. That's the only thing keeping this award from already being decided.
Oakland's Mark Mulder (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6393) has a 17-4 record, but he's been fading. Pedro Martinez (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=4875)'s numbers aren't what they used to be, leaving his Boston teammate Curt Schilling (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=4267) as the only other legitimate competitor.
Schilling's ERA is more than a half-run higher, and he's got only one more win than Santana. Schilling's good-guy reputation will do nothing to hurt his chances, and same goes for his Fenway Park office. Plus, the perception that Schilling was overshadowed by Johnson during their days together with the Diamondbacks could add a vote or two for the veteran. Fair or not, some writers might figure that the 25-year-old Santana will win many more awards in his career and decide to go with the 37-year-old Schilling.
The key to this could come down to the Yankees. Santana's final start is scheduled in New York the last week in September, and Schilling is supposed to pitch at home against his team's biggest rival next Sunday.
They'll probably disagree on the East Coast, but regardless of what happens in those final outings -- the hardware has to go to Santana. He's just been simply too good. Opponents are batting .193 against him. That only happens with relievers -- or on video games.
"A lot of people are talking about me," Santana said. "I don't put that on my mind. All I do is try to have fun every time I go out there."
That's probably the most refreshing thing about this -- his attitude.
"I think Johan is trying to do what we're trying to do," Gardenhire said, "and that's win the division. That's where his focus should be. All the other stuff is secondary."