Braden's Role

I have concern about Oakland Athletics' pitcher Dallas Braden since his perfect game on May 9. Since then he does not win a game and his performance is less than average. Over this period his earned run average is 4.75. This is only slightly worse than his lifetime ERA of 4.52. Yahoo Sports supplies Situational Statistics for pitchers and Braden's are eye opening. With the bases empty his ERA is 2.13, which is excellent. With runners on it soars to 6.89 and from here it gets worse. With Runners in Scoring Position (RISP) it is 9.87 and with RISP and two outs it is an abysmal 23.32. Yahoo also breaks down a pitcher's performance according to the number of pitches thrown. He starts out poorly with an 8.18 ERA for pitches one through fifteen. He settles down though pitch sixty and then starts yielding runs again. His ERA through sixty pitches is 3.57, which is OK, but not great.

I think Dallas Braden can be an effective pitcher for the A's, but Manager Bob Geren must understand the role he is able to fill. He has the makings of a fifth starter, not to be pitch more than five innings or so. He is occasionally brilliant, most notably his perfect game. Overall, he does not show enough for consideration as a top three stud. This is the story of his career so far, one great game and then mediocrity. It is up to Geren to adjust his thinking about Braden and his role as a starter for the Oakland Athletics.