His team’s hitting, but Jurrjens isn’t pitching – and he knows it
Jair Jurrjens delivers to David Wright on Wednesday. (AP photo by John Bazemore)
If it’s not one thing, it’s another. There can be no baseball without worry. As the Braves finished a splendid homestand, we offer two findings:
1. The offense, for a change, looks really good.
2. Jair Jurrjens does not.
In taking five of six from the Brewers and Mets, the Braves broke double figures twice. They managed 10-plus runs only six times last season, never after Aug. 12. The influence of new hitting coaches Greg Walker and Scott Fletcher already is apparent. Even when Freddie Freeman couldn’t buy a hit, he was (baseball phrase) grinding out good at-bats, and the culmination came Tuesday night — an 11-pitch AB that yielded an RBI double.
Freeman had two more extra-base hits Wednesday afternoon — a double to right and a homer to left — plus a sacrifice fly. Not to get all Zen on you, but this grinding stuff works. If the Braves keep at it, they’ll hit enough to be a playoff team. Provided they pitch well enough, which might no longer be a given and which brings us to Jurrjens.
The 2011 All-Star has started three games in 2012, and only once has he made it through five innings. Opponents are hitting .362 against him. His ERA is 8.10. He has more walks (nine) than strikeouts (eight). He has yielded five home runs.
On Wednesday he needed 70 pitches over the first three innings. Three batters in the fifth, he was gone. He already had given back one lead and was in danger of surrendering another when manager Fredi Gonzalez pulled him. This meant Jurrjens couldn’t be the winning pitcher on a day his team would score 14 runs. Not a great feeling, eh?
Said Jurrjens: “What do you think?”
Then: “If I had an answer, we wouldn’t be having this discussion. I’m trying to find a feel, a release, a confidence. Nothing is going my way right now.”
Yes, it’s early, but seeing Jurrjens look like the world’s most accomplished batting-practice pitcher isn’t a comforting sight. He’s the key man in this rotation. Tommy Hanson looks fine, and there’s no reason to believe Tim Hudson won’t be Tim Hudson when he returns from back rehab. Still, Jurrjens figured to be at worst the Braves’ No. 2 starter, and there’s no real fallback if he fails.
He offered no excuses Wednesday. He’s healthy again: “I feel good. I just don’t see any results.” Gonzalez suggested the rain might have had an effect, but Jurrjens brushed that gift horse aside. “Even if it bothered me, I need to make adjustments. I’m letting my team down right now. I’m overworking the bullpen. I’m not eating innings.”
The Braves have overridden his past two starts by scoring 24 runs. Here Jurrjens smiled, the only one offered by this famously sunny soul in his postgame briefing. “I don’t think I’m going to be able to complain about run support this year.”
The weird part Wednesday was that Jurrjens looked pretty good when he wasn’t looking awful. He went 1-2-3 in the first and fourth innings, but the Mets generated three base runners off him in the second, five in the third and three in the fifth. “I have it one inning, then I don’t have it,” Jurrjens said. “I have it and I lose it.”
Then, with only the slightest prompting, Jurrjens broached a subject of some external debate — his fastball. There are those who believe that because Jurrjens doesn’t throw 98 mph he cannot be considered a real ace. (Braves fans, having seen the Hall of Fame work of Tom Glavine and Greg Maddux, should know better.) But after Wednesday’s struggles this craftsman sounded as if he’d begun to doubt his tools.
“A lot of people get on me about how fast I’m throwing,” Jurrjens said. “I need to go back to pitching. But [velocity] is a hot topic every time I pitch. Everyone wants to see how fast I’m throwing, and that gets in your mind.”
Nobody cared how fast Jurrjens did or didn’t throw the first half of last season. He was 12-3 with an ERA of 1.87 at the All-Star break, which makes you a big-time pitcher in any league. But he hurt his knee in August and didn’t pitch in September, and he wasn’t impressive in spring training.
After Friday’s start, Jurrjens felt encouraged. He’d thrown mostly OK, he thought, but was hurt by back-to-back Brewers homers. On Wednesday he could take no such solace. He was bad and he knew it. Deep down he must know that he will never throw as hard as Justin Verlander, but someone who won 50 big-league games by his 26th birthday should also know the radar gun can be wildly overrated.
On a dark Wednesday afternoon, Jurrjens himself pointed to the only way out: He has to go back to pitching. If he does, he’ll be fine. If he doesn’t, his team won’t be.
By Mark Bradley
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
118 comments Add your comment
JSS
April 18th, 2012
9:06 pm
Keep plugging Jair, at least you’re not the highest paid pinch hitter in MLB!!!
Jo Bling
April 18th, 2012
9:15 pm
Uh, JNick, by what criteria do you declare Hudson the best starter on the Braves? I will repeat, when JJ is healthy he has rated among the top five pitchers in the major leagues. I can back that up with factual data. Can you back up your claim about Hudson?
Sending major leaguers down to AAA for anything other than rehab just isn’t done. It does not happen (except to Francouer, and we saw how well that worked out). Jurrjens is not in rehab. He is supposed to be healthy. He is a major leaguer, not a minor leaguer. He has a job to win major league games, not minor league games. He is paid a lot of money to do that. If he can’t do the job, then management will have to trade him for pennies on the dollar or cut him loose. He is not going to be sent to the minor leagues. Jair Jurrjens is no Kenshin Kawakami. Not even close. KK never should have been in the majors in the first place.
What’s in store for JJ? « Rowland's Office
April 18th, 2012
9:30 pm
[...] Bradley writes that if Jurrjens continues to fail, there is no fall back. I’m not sure I agree. Hanson looks like he’ll be fine. [...]
Felix
April 18th, 2012
9:31 pm
Yeah man!!! Bats came alive! Whipped the heck out of the mangy mutts!!!!
And, on second thought, maybe that ‘cisco kid ain’t so bad. And believe or not, Chad Durbin didn’t give up a home run.
(Opponents’ are batting around .500 against Durbin. Yikes!)
Jo Bling
April 18th, 2012
9:37 pm
And as MB pointed out, he was 12-3 with a 1.87 ERA when he got hurt at the All-Star break last year. He was the best pitcher in the National League, and second-best in the majors at the time. When he’s healthy, he’s a phenomenal pitcher.
Look, if he’s still hurt then send him to AAA. I’ve got no problem with that. But if he’s supposed to be healthy then he needs to be doing his job in the big leagues. Is he still hurt or not? From what I’m reading, he’s healthy but just hasn’t gotten his rhythm back. He will. He’s a pro.
kevkat
April 18th, 2012
9:55 pm
Tommy Hanson looks fine, and there’s no reason to believe Tim Hudson won’t be Tim Hudson when he returns from back rehab.
Does Tommy Hanson really look fine? He single handedly lost the last game. I’ll admit he looks better than JJ but who doesn’t at this point.
JNick
April 18th, 2012
9:58 pm
You’re putting half a season of work as your “factual data” as to him being a top-5 pitcher? I’d take Josh Johnson, Lester, Lincecum, Cain, Felix Hernandez, Hamels, Cliff Lee, Halladay, Verlander, Weaver or even Buehrle over JJ. Hell even David Price or Stephen Strasburg.
A comparable pitcher (LOOK at career stats) to JJ is CJ Wilson. I wouldn’t say he’s a top 5 or 10 pitcher….
Again – if he’s just hurting the team with his 4 inning “starts” – there’s no reason to keep throwing him out there in games that MATTER. He’s lacking confidence and, as you said, rhythm – you don’t get that back by continuing to go out there and get your ass kicked by ML hitters.
You really have to be joking if you don’t think Huddy is a better pitcher than Jurrjens. Look at the stats…over a career that is 4 times as long as Jurrjens (with more than 3 times as many wins), Hudson has a lower ERA, lower WHIP, better K/BB ratio, fewer HR/IP….the numbers go on and on. JJ doesn’t beat Hudson in any serious pitching category…not to mention 8 seasons of over 200 innings (one for JJ) and 7 seasons of 15+ wins (ZERO for JJ). Come on…
Nativebird
April 18th, 2012
10:01 pm
Most overrated pitcher on the staff. Yes decent. But a 1 or 2? Over time it’s clear that he isn’t. Could’ve had big right handed RBI producing bat in this lineup by now in exchange. Might’ve helped avoid that collapse last September.
Sonny Clusters
April 18th, 2012
10:05 pm
Let’s say you was a barber and you was not at your best and the past few haircuts you had cut off an ear or some eyebrows and you was getting criticized a lot but at one time you was one of the best barbers in town and you was just in a slump. What if somebody wanted to send you down to barber college to work things out? What if instead of going back to barber college they gave you some extra chances to give haircuts to work things out? And what if that worked and you was fixed and was able to cut hair again without hurting anybody and most everybody was giving you good tips because you was the man again at the barber shop? That’s just what is going on with Jair. When we was playing ball we aggravated our knee a little bit and suddenly we was a mess because everybody knows that “The knee is the whole basis of who you are [as a player].” A player with bad knees might as well give it up because knees are so important in determining who you are as a player. We will always remember playing ball with Phlegm Lattimore and him starting to sputter a little at the plate and we would always tell Coach to check his knees because we knew they were the whole basis. Same thing for Jair. That’s how we feel and we welcome your comments.
BravesFan79
April 18th, 2012
10:06 pm
Anyone who says JJ isnt that good hasnt watched the Braves the past 3 years. He has been the ACE of the staff. And him being hurt at the end of the past few years is the main reason the braves havent been past the 1st round of the playoffs.
BravesFan79
April 18th, 2012
10:08 pm
You morons who say JJ isnt any good are the same ones who said the season was over after 4 games.
Tdawg
April 18th, 2012
10:14 pm
Jo Billing when he was at his best I would agree with you. Problem word being “when”. He has looked as pathetic of a pitcher as any in the majors sense the all star break last season. I will use that word again. When is he suppose to get back to form? How long are the Braves suppose to keep having to battle back from his usual 5 or 6 run donations to the opposing team. If he would go down to AAA and work on his problems, then I could see the Braves not giving up on him just yet. However, if I am Braves ownership I would in no uncertain terms tell Gonzalez that Jair better not set foot on to that mound again if he hasn’t shown 100% improvement.
JNick
April 18th, 2012
10:14 pm
BravesFan79:
Over the last 3 years:
Hudson 35-20 3.07 ERA 486 IP 347/143 K/BB
Jurrjens 34-22 3.20 ERA 483 IP 328/161 K/BB
Hanson 32-22 3.28 ERA 460 IP 431/148 K/BB
Don’t make it sound like JJ has been head and shoulders above the rest. If you’d pick any Brave pitcher to start a 1 game, winner take all game, you’d pick Hudson….and any player on the Braves would say the same.
bulldogbubba
April 18th, 2012
10:18 pm
Clusters did you see Chipper come out of the tunnel to hug and fanny pat Freddie and Uggla? Somethings never change.His knees seem fine then.
JNick
April 18th, 2012
10:22 pm
Right now, JJ reminds me a bit of Mark Fidrych….one great season, knee injury….never the same. Only time will tell if JJ recovers from this, or goes the way of the Bird…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Fidrych
Dr. Kenneth Noisewater
April 18th, 2012
10:22 pm
I agree w/ earlier posts about letting him pitch until we see how Huddy does. If I’m not mistaken, JJ has Boras for an agent- if he doesn’t improve, trade by the All Star game & Boras deal with him. Too many great prospects in the Braves’ minors.
Dr. Kenneth Noisewater
April 18th, 2012
10:24 pm
Clusters- what if you’re a barber and you accidently slice a jugular vein of some sort?? barber college or traded to Great Clips??
Tdawg
April 18th, 2012
10:26 pm
Sonny Clusters I have a question for ya. Just out of curiosity. How many times do we let him cut our ears off before we get a new barber? Nah, better to lose a couple of games at the minor league level than to watch his futile effort in Atlanta.
CAN OF CORN
April 18th, 2012
10:30 pm
LOWE
D. Lowe is 2-0 with a 1.98 ERA with the Indians, as of tonight’s game.
Hillbilly D
April 18th, 2012
11:39 pm
How many times do we let him cut our ears off before we get a new barber?
Well, if he cuts off 2 of your ears, he’s probably not going to cut off anymore.
bravo-n-knoxville
April 19th, 2012
12:12 am
JJ should be in extended spring training, and may have been had it not been for the dismal spring of Julio Teheran, and the injury to Peter Moylan. Had Pete been healthy, then Medlin or Teheran could have been in the rotation instead of JJ. His pitches are being squared with regularity.
JSS
April 19th, 2012
12:23 am
Clusters and Hillbilly, I’ll take you guys any day over those Stat-a-matic freaks (and you know who you are)!!!
Seth
April 19th, 2012
1:27 am
Wow, what a reverse from every other Braves season EVER
reckingball
April 19th, 2012
3:42 am
Jurrjins will get it together, and it won’t be long.
YoungerThan ThatNow
April 19th, 2012
4:09 am
Great work and spot on Mr. Bradley! A year ago, for my money JJ was arguably the best pitcher in baseball… and he was a “pitcher” not a thrower or a hurler! So, it’s definitely there… just got to sort it all out!
Thanks again, and… GO BRAVES!!
legionaire
April 19th, 2012
6:47 am
With a knee injury it is tough to ever get back to where you were. Pitching puts such extreme pressure on the legs that even a slight stretch or tear make you change just a little to accomdate. In baseball that little change can be the difference in a .300 hiiter and a .250 hitter or a pitcher who can hit spots anywhere at different speeds (Maddox) to a journeyman thrower for long releif. He may never get it back.
joe p
April 19th, 2012
6:47 am
Where’s Leo when you need him?
JR
April 19th, 2012
6:48 am
He says he’s not worried about velocity. That it’s more about pitching. I agree to a certain extent,but he has went from someone that threw from 91-94 two years ago to an 84-88 mph guy while his off speed pitches have remained about the same speed (80-84). I think the Braves should be worried. I was saying this when he was 12-3 last year.
Turn off caplock
April 19th, 2012
6:50 am
When I see a post in all caps, I ignore it as the ramblings of a pre-teen.
White Sox lose 3-2 to Orioles | White Sox Fans Only
April 19th, 2012
7:06 am
[...] His team’s hitting, but Jurrjens is not pitching – and he knows it [...]
DetroitBraves
April 19th, 2012
7:39 am
Excellent point about the approach in general, and Freeman specifically MB. That at-bat a couple of nights ago for Freeman that culminated with a double was outstanding. Had he made an out it would have still been outstanding. Two years ago the Braves offense was passable despite youth and injuries because they had patient at-bats and took the walks that were there for the taking. I have no idea what happened to largely the same group last year but that 2010 season provided some hope for this year. Hopefully they keep it up. Heyward, in particular, is back to doing the things that made him a top prospect a couple of years ago. As for Jurrjens, while a lot of us thought he was over his head, making him a good sell-high candidate before his injury, he wasn’t this far over his head. My guess is that he’s still hurting but we’ll see.
DetroitBraves
April 19th, 2012
7:42 am
@Can of corn, Derek Lowe has 3 strikeouts in 18 innings and a 1.72 WHIP. If you are suggesting his record or ERA are sustainable then perhaps you would also enjoy membership in the Jesse Chavez fan club.
AlanFalcon
April 19th, 2012
7:42 am
JJ needs a mind coach more than anything, his mannerisims are starting to look like Yunel Escobar and we know where that went, get him some help or try once again to trade him, the team doesn’t need that burden again.
Banned Poster
April 19th, 2012
8:17 am
JJ will be fine. He has said it himself, he needs to get back to pitching, which is what he does best. For some reason, the knee and hearing people tell him he doesn’t throw fast enough has gotten into his head. What he needs is to clear his mind and just pitch. Worry about locating your fastball more than how hard you are throwing it and then mix in your offspeed stuff. Greg Maddux won 350+ games this way. Like I said, give him a start or two and then JJ will be fine.
FANtastic
April 19th, 2012
8:19 am
Not sure about JJ being number two, I think that spot belongs to Hanson. And we certainly have fall back options if JJ fails: Minor and Beachy have looked good, Delgado has impressed in his latest starts (at least giving the team a chance to win), and Medlen should be starting anyway. Don’t forget that guy named Julio Teheran who’s almost major league ready. Even if we get in a bind, Livan Hernandez is there, and Sean Gilmartin could make a spot start or two. Let’s not panic about pitching just yet.
charles
April 19th, 2012
8:20 am
I’m so glad we arent the Bosox right now-i love the offense-just hope it continues! We will be fine pitching wise but the Nats look really good right now!
DePort
April 19th, 2012
8:34 am
Maybe if everyone would leave JJ alone he would pitch better –
“A lot of people get on me about how fast I’m throwing,” Jurrjens said. “I need to go back to pitching. But [velocity] is a hot topic every time I pitch. Everyone wants to see how fast I’m throwing, and that gets in your mind.”
BLK09GT
April 19th, 2012
8:39 am
Sonny @ 8:59 PM, for once I agree with you. I know you are taking a shot at CJ, but yes. I said during spring training when he was having issues that it was his knee that was the cause. JJ himself stated in an interview that he was “thinking” too much about the knee and not on making his pitches. I also question how comfortable it is for him to be pitching with that brace and that may be distracting him. This also leads back to Fredi and the Braves decision to put Medlen in the pen. If things do not improve for JJ, start Medlen who should have been in the starting 5 from the beginning.
Longtimefan
April 19th, 2012
9:02 am
I am thrilled with the way the Braves are playing. Where are all the soothsayers that predicted the Braves would finish 4 or 5 in the division and who said the offence sucked. Oh, they are the same guys who are not complaining about JJ, an Ace the first half of last year who started 12-3. Man, you guys are a tough crowd. Do you think you might wait just a little bit to see if he can turn it around before trying to run him out of town. Yes, the Braves have a plethora of starting pitching and sometime this year something has to give. If JJ can get back into form by the AS break Wren will be in strong position to trade our SP depth to stock the farm or for SS help if need be. You have Tito have a plan. Players go thru slumps, just like a lot of you guys with your blogging. When are some of you going to come on and admit you might have been wrong about the Braves offence and Heyward in particular. I’ll wait a few wssks and post some of the more idiotic comments from preseason and the first 4 games.
Joshua
April 19th, 2012
9:23 am
Everyone clamoring for Medlen to be in the rotation needs to just stop. It isn’t going to happen, nor should it. Medlen is FAR more valuable to this team in the pen – a guy who can come in in long relief and be effective for multiple innings with consistency is hard to find, and we NEED that considering our starters don’t go deep into games often enough.
JJ is going to fine. He’ll probably never post cy young numbers like the first half last year but he’s going to be an effective #3 at worst. He goes through these stretches from time to time be he also goes through stretches of dominance as well. Beyond that, with Hudson coming back and Delgado pitching effectively, even if JJ dropped from the rotation, we don’t need Medlen in there.
Again, Medlen is far more valuable in his relief role and will not be in the rotation, so please for the love of god, just stop saying he should start.
Coach (2012 Fredi's beisbol fandango)
April 19th, 2012
9:59 am
It’s more than just Jurrjens, the problem that is. What problem?
Getting good quality starts. As in the fact that our Braves have just TWO of those babies. Two quality starts, two starts of six innings or better….and it’s killing our bullpen already, again. Our pen is on pace to pitch 526 innings. Compare that to the 522 innings they threw in 2011 and you can see where this is going.
It’s not good folks and this trend has to stop. Or else we will witness another late season meltdown.
BLK09GT
April 19th, 2012
10:03 am
If JJ continues to go just 5 innings or less does that make him a starter or a long relief pitcher? Just saying…
Jo
April 19th, 2012
10:06 am
If Jurrjens doesnt improve in the next two starts and Delgado continues to pitch well I cant possibly see where he can stay in the rotation after Hudson returns. Minor is pitching well and should be considered the #4 starter with Beachy #3 or #2 and Delgado as #5 and obviously Hudson #1 that only leave one spot between Jurrjens & Hanson. Not to mention Teheran is in AAA. Unless but some how Jurrjens and string together two 7 inning 1 run outings hes doomed for DL/trade/senddown when Huddy returns.
Lobosolo
April 19th, 2012
10:12 am
Chris from Sacramento… are you serious…. you have taken the new reins as the armchair crybaby that knows the absolute least of a storied bunch… what an idiot… no, JNick, you’re wrong he was/is one of the best… he is so apparently working through an injury… Please, for the love of Mike… would you crysters just stay off the computer?
space monkey
April 19th, 2012
10:34 am
Jurjjens was lucky first half of last year. He’s been horrible for years. Maddux and Glavine did a very good job of avoiding bats. JJ pitches to contact. Both he and Hanson do not look good at all this year. Medlen is our best starting pitcher, and we are wasting him.
The rut
April 19th, 2012
11:08 am
JJ is this year’s version of D. Lowe. Why do you think no one took him in trade in the off season. If Fredi takes Delgado out of the lineup then he is a very sick person. Sonn,y as usual you are correct about the knees
HardHat
April 19th, 2012
11:21 am
Here is an idea….Since this pitching coach is not helping how about get Glavine to tutor him. Get Glavine out of the broadcast booth for a couple days a week and let them watch tapes and try things out. Use your resources ! ! !
benchwarmer
April 19th, 2012
11:36 am
Is JJ this years Lowe for Freddi? who was it that gave such a bad review of JJ last year at the allstar break? I forget. I wondered about that then but have seen it validated by a poor second half and beginning this year.
Dan Schlossberg
April 19th, 2012
12:19 pm
At the rate things are going, Jurrjens should be the odd man out when Tim Hudson comes off the DL. Everybody else in the rotation is pulling his own weight. Maybe a refresher course at Gwinnett would help.
Beginning to look like Kawasucki
April 19th, 2012
1:17 pm
JJ is beginning to look like our next Kawasucki!!! An hasn’t earned anything, NO RESPECT. Put him in the bullpen where he can do less damage or go ahead and send him to Mississippi.