More bad history for Kawakami (0-9), but Chipper homers
What's that about a picture telling a story? Here's Kenshin Kawakami after allowing a two-run homer to Evan Longoria in Tampa Bay's four-run first inning. (Curtis Compton/AJC)
And in other news, Kenshin Kawakami probably also feels like retiring.
Kawakami hasn’t quite built up the pension that Chipper Jones has, and he certainly doesn’t have “longevity” stamped on his forehead right now. The Braves’ Japanese import just became the first starting pitcher in franchise history to start 0-9, by virtue of a 10-4 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays.
The last franchise pitcher to start the season 0-9, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, was Tom Tuckey of the 1909 Boston Doves. But Tuckey was not an exclusive starter. He lost seven games as a starter and two as a reliever.
Since baseball is a number’s game, here’s one to chew on: at 0-9 through 13 starts, Kawakami is on a pace to go 0-22. But that assumes he’ll be in the rotation the rest of the season, which probably isn’t a safe assumption.
When Braves general manager Frank Wren signed Kawakami last year to a three-year, $23 million contract, it was somewhat of an historical moment for the organization. But the pitcher is making the wrong kind of history. Even before Tuesday’s game, Kawakami earned the distinction of becoming the first pitcher in major league history to start the season 0-8 while playing for a first-place team.
The Braves just came off a 6-5 road trip (four one-run losses) and were returning to Turner Field, where they were 19-6. But after a two-hour and 20-minute rain delay, Kawakami seemed intent on wrecking the party. Tampa Bay pounded him for four runs in the first inning, including a prodigious two-run homer by Evan Longoria to left field. Through two innings, the Rays had five runs and five hits, including a home run and three doubles.
By the time Kawakami left in the fifth inning, he was assured of going through his 13th start without a victory. His totals: five innings, five runs (fortunately only two earned), seven hits and three walks (one intentional). He threw 100 pitches in five innings. He also committed two errors in the fifth inning on an errant pickoff attempt and a fielding error, though somehow he escaped without allowing a run.
“I’m just getting into a bad rhythm every start,” Kawakami said. “It’s my fault that some of the games are going this way. I have to improve on that.”
Jones managed some improvement. After a day of retirement talk — and having missed nine of the previous 11 games with a sore ring finger on his right hand — Jones doubled and homered in the game. If every game had gone like this, a retirement announcement probably wouldn’t seem imminent.
But everything points to an announcement soon. I spoke to Jones before the game and have updated and re-written the column, which is online now. Chipper wasn’t at his locker after the game, dressing in a back room, away from the media. But his parents, who are in town for game, spoke and had some interesting comments, which you can read in the Jones’ column.
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346 comments Add your comment
Jeff Schultz
June 15th, 2010
11:45 pm
Shaky start for Mr. Resop. He’s now thrown 18 pitches in this inning.
GT Alum
June 15th, 2010
11:46 pm
Boatdoc, KK pretty much earned the sniping tonight. An ERA of 9 isn’t going to get you very far. I have to think Price did not have his best stuff tonight, but, then, neither did KK.
CaptainMudderland
June 15th, 2010
11:46 pm
Get this guy out of here Bobby!
GT Alum
June 15th, 2010
11:47 pm
OK, I think we can stick a fork in this one.
mclOUTh
June 15th, 2010
11:47 pm
McCann is slow as molasses…and that was a horrible throw
Jeff Schultz
June 15th, 2010
11:47 pm
Interesting base running there by Crawford, by the way.
CaptainMudderland
June 15th, 2010
11:47 pm
Beer sales just increased…thanks Resop!
Jeff Schultz
June 15th, 2010
11:48 pm
O’Brien — KK
GT Alum
June 15th, 2010
11:52 pm
I’d be reluctant to move Medlen back to the ‘pen, and not just because he’s been better than KK. Sure’ Medlen’s been great in both roles this year, but how much do you really want to bounce a kid back and forth and risk messing with his head. Besides, Medlen looks to have a future with this team that will last a lot longer than the end of next year. KK doesn’t. Go with the guy who’s helping you build for the future, not the one you’re overpaying.
Boatdoc
June 15th, 2010
11:55 pm
I completely agree KK is the one on the bubble if a 5th starter becomes available – and I’ll add that JJ was easily the star of the staff last year – but is anyone else nervous about reports of decreased velocity and pitch count limits from JJ’s rehab starts?
And anyone else wish it could have been Saito instead of Resop? 2 hits and 2 walks … There go a few more of Bobby’s hairs.
mclOUTh
June 15th, 2010
11:55 pm
Prado is a freak
GT Alum
June 15th, 2010
11:56 pm
Well, Boatdoc, unfortunately, it sounds like we need to figure out what we’ve got with Resop pretty soon. If he doesn’t pan out, it could be a painful process.
GT Alum
June 15th, 2010
11:57 pm
Wow, a rope from J-Hey.
mclOUTh
June 15th, 2010
11:57 pm
thumb must be feeling better…..
GT Alum
June 16th, 2010
12:00 am
OK, I’m calling 3 run HR for Glaus.
GT Alum
June 16th, 2010
12:02 am
Ouch, or not. He made Glaus look bad.
mclOUTh
June 16th, 2010
12:02 am
Dang Troy it was on a tee!!!
Line Drive
June 16th, 2010
12:02 am
needed a 3 run bomb from Glaus
Line Drive
June 16th, 2010
12:04 am
first 2 hitters on and then nothing from 3,4 and 5!!!!
mclOUTh
June 16th, 2010
12:04 am
We look like CRAP tonight!!!
Jeff Schultz
June 16th, 2010
12:05 am
That’s 3 straight Ks for Glaus tonight after a first inning walk.
GT Alum
June 16th, 2010
12:05 am
Ugh, for the Braves, the story of this one is going to be poor execution.
CaptainMudderland
June 16th, 2010
12:06 am
Stinking it up royaly for sure!
tyler
June 16th, 2010
12:12 am
Wow- just realized that I can actually watch this game-was listening to it online. I live in Pensacola so I don’t get too many Braves games down here. To tell you the truth, i may have been better off not seeing this garbage.
Line Drive
June 16th, 2010
12:12 am
Isn’t Resop a Rethread…..I have seen his act before….put him in the same vault with Jo Jo Reyes and lets get anybody else….so what if he becomes a Free Agent….
Jeff Schultz
June 16th, 2010
12:14 am
Heyward lost the ball on that.
Line Drive
June 16th, 2010
12:15 am
Formula for defeat….lousy starting pitching, lousy relief pitching, 4 errors and no timely hitting and with that 3B by Crawford its good night for me
tyler
June 16th, 2010
12:15 am
Wow- KK looked worse than this?
Jeff Schultz
June 16th, 2010
12:15 am
Wonder how long Chris Resop will be up. His line is going to be ugly.
GT Alum
June 16th, 2010
12:16 am
Resop goes on waivers tomorrow?
GT Alum
June 16th, 2010
12:17 am
Well, so much for the showcasing Resop theory. If that was the case, he’d already be out of there.
tyler
June 16th, 2010
12:19 am
I hope Resop didn’t invite any family members to the big game…
Ross
June 16th, 2010
12:19 am
I’m telling you , this is a disgusting performance from Cox. What a buzz kill. Let’s just put the 9-in-a-row losers in and forget all about the electric play of Hinske and Conrad – Jones and McCann, guaranteed outs – a pitchout and can’t even find the damn base – it’s disgusting. This is why people are indifferent about the Braves. Cox manages with his emotions, not his brain. You have to have some damn fire in your belly to play this game.
Jeff Schultz
June 16th, 2010
12:20 am
Mr friend. The end.
CaptainMudderland
June 16th, 2010
12:21 am
root. root. root for the bravos….sunken ships are insane…
Jeff Schultz
June 16th, 2010
12:24 am
Tyler– If he did, they fell asleep in the sixth.
ASN
June 16th, 2010
12:24 am
Jeff, you don’t think Lowe was a worse FA signing by Wren? You note that the Braves didn’t offer KK $23 million to be a #5 starter, which I agree with, but we signed D-Lowe to be the Ace and #1 starter for the rotation. Based on your logic, then, why isn’t Lowe a worst signing?
ASN
June 16th, 2010
12:24 am
worse*
Jeff Schultz
June 16th, 2010
12:26 am
ASN — valid points on Lowe, especially since Wren gave him one year more than anybody else was offering. But Lowe has been a halfway decent pitcher. Not No. 1 obviously, but ascent of Hanson and Jurrjens and comeback of Hudson is what also dropped him in the rotation.
CaptainMudderland
June 16th, 2010
12:27 am
Rally? Resop fable?
The Difference
June 16th, 2010
12:29 am
once chipper gets injured again, we will have a better lineup….i’m liking Blanco…this could be a good lineup:
Prado
Blanco
Heyward
Glaus
McCann
Hinske
Escobar
Conrad
Pitcher spot
The Difference
June 16th, 2010
12:31 am
still in 1st place…..but Mets are now 0.5 games back….*sigh* Go Braves! Let’s get them tomorrow!
Stretch
June 16th, 2010
12:31 am
Can we pleae start Infante at short and use Escobar as a backup/utility guy. Yuni is a great defensive shortstop but his offense is lethargic. What happened to this kid that was supposed to hit 25 homers a year? I will take Omar’s offense/defense over Yunel’s defense/offense any day.
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June 16th, 2010
12:32 am
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GT Alum
June 16th, 2010
12:36 am
Well, Jeff, that depends on how you measure effectiveness. KK has a better ERA, WHIP and K to BB ratio than Lowe. Lowe has a bit of an advantage in innings per start and obviously has the advantage in wins, but that’s got to be at least as much an effect of KK generally being matched up against better pitchers than Lowe and getting less run support as Lowe “managing the game” better than KK.
Jimbo
June 16th, 2010
12:36 am
http://clatl.com/freshloaf/archives/2010/06/15/chipper-jones-2011-bingo-all-star
Ross
June 16th, 2010
12:40 am
My dear departed father never missed a minute of Braves baseball. I would see him get so disgusted with Cox that it seemed he had ingested chihuahua doodoo. His lip had that turned up quality you give it when you are so disgusted you can’t even speak. That Cox is here tonight. It’s the whole Jones psychodrama. The man is 40 without benefit of steroids. But Cox is “loyal”. Whatever that means in the context of trying to win baseball games – in my opinion, nothing. Loyalty if anything goes to a person’s attitude – and Chipper’s has always been sour and mean and me-me-me. I looked at the lineup tonight before the game, in light of today’s latest chapter in “As Chipper Turns”, and knew we were dead. I can’t say any more.
Jeff Schultz
June 16th, 2010
12:41 am
GT Alum — Who would you rather have on the mound?
Jeff Schultz
June 16th, 2010
12:42 am
Not bad for an old guy. That’s homer No. 4 on the season and No. 430 in his career.
GT Alum
June 16th, 2010
12:43 am
And Chipper goes yard. For all the Chipper bashers, he’s actually gone 2 for 5 with a HR and a double, 2 runs scored and a RBI. Chipper honestly wasn’t one of the Braves’ 5 biggest problems tonight.