There was a palpable here-we-go-again vibe permeating throughout the park as Daisuke Matsuzaka surrendered four hits among the game’s first six hitters, including a long home run to catcher Kurt Suzuki.
What those who were groaning did not immediately realize was that Matsuzaka had made an adjustment that would soon pay off. After walking a career high-tying eight men in his previous start, the enigmatic righty was committed to pounding the zone, hell or high water.
"I was thinking after my previous outing [that] if I’m gonna give up all those walks, I’m better off just trying to let them hit it," Matsuzaka said through interpreter Masa Hoshino.
The time-tested strategy failed to work early on, but as Matsuzaka threw strike after strike as the night wore on it was clear he was comfortable challenging the Oakland hitters.
"I hate to say this, it was almost too many strikes," manager Terry Francona said, referring to the rocky first. "He worked ahead real well, and he got hurt when he was ahead in the count. [He was] 0-2 to Suzuki. But if that’s a problem, we’ll take it."
In the end, it was not a problem at all.
At one point in the outing, the 29-year-old had thrown 81 percent of his pitches for strikes. He settled for a remarkable 77 percent rate (84-for-109), very few of which were handled with any success after the first inning.
Matsuzaka struck out seven and did not walk a batter. There were 10 hits, but all six he allowed after the first inning were singles and only one man reached as far as third base before Daniel Bard came in to get the last out in the seventh. Two of the hits came on a dropped fly ball by left fielder Jeremy Hermida and an infield dribbler that shortstop Cliff Pennington beat out.
"Beyond that first inning my only thought was really to dig in and keep battling," Matsuzaka said. "And things got better."
Some of the talk after Matsuzaka’s promising start surrounded the fact that he has yet to put together two good starts in a row. In fact, he has alternated a quality start for an ugly one six straight times. However, Matsuzaka’s new, but old, approach has given some in the organization confidence that consistency is not too far off.
"Hopefully he’s proven to himself that when he does pitch to contact early in the count, he might give up a few more hits, [but it] gives him a chance to be more efficient," pitching coach John Farrell said.
After each of his past few bad outings, Matsuzaka has talked about how he has struggled to make corrections when things are not going his way. Essentially, he said, he compounds his issues by overthinking the situation and just digging himself a bigger hole.
This scenario has led to some long, trying innings, several of which Matsuzaka has failed to get out of.
An indication that he may have mentally turned a corner occurred in the fourth inning Wednesday, when Matsuzaka stuck to the game plan after giving up back-to-back singles to start the frame.
First, he struck out Pennington on three pitches, coming right after the Athletics’ shortstop when he showed bunt early in the count and then blowing him away with a 93-mph fastball on 0-2.
Then, after getting ahead of Oakland center fielder Rajai Davis on a nasty curve and a well-placed heater, he got the speedster to ground into an inning-ending double play.
The Sox would take the lead one inning later. Matsuzaka was set up for his fourth victory of the season, not long after he looked to be headed down another dark path.
"Things haven’t been as even-keeled as he has established prior or that he would like, but he’s showing some outings of dominance and, more than anything, hopefully he gains some trust and is able to throw the ball over the plate consistently and make pitches when he has to," Farrell said.
Citing the three-run first and the fact that he failed to get out of the seventh, Matsuzaka said he was not satisfied with the start. With the way it began, sending groans rippling to the rafters, everyone else was.
