The bottom line is that Matsuzaka has just enough moments of dominance that you can never completely write him off. Prone to injury, inconsistent, maddeningly stubborn. Sure, he is all those things. But every once in awhile he looks exactly like the guy that everyone in New England hoped they were getting when he arrived like a god from Japan. We know he has the capability to do special things.
We see him, from time to time, methodically slice through opponents. We know he has it. Like the old slogan for Prego pasta sauce, "It's in there."
The Red Sox just hope that the recipe is right in 2011.
In going 13-12 with a 4.98 ERA over the last two injury-marred seasons, Matsuzaka has made it hard for fans to recall what he was in his first two years as a Red Sox (33-15, 3.72 ERA).
Yet, even through the downs, there have been just enough ups to make us all wonder if there will be a day when it all comes together.
Matsuzaka’s lost 2009 season saw him return in mid-September from a nearly three-month layoff to go 3-1 with a 2.22 ERA in four starts.
In a pair of starts last May after coming back from a neck strain, the right-hander allowed one run on three hits in seven innings to defeat Toronto and then carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning against Philadelphia. He looked as good as ever, as good as any Red Sox pitcher did all year. What killed it was the horrendous outing he had between those games (seven runs in 4 2/3 innings at New York) and the stinker he had after them (eight walks in 4 2/3 innings vs. Kansas City).
Like a well-caffeinated yo-yo, Dice-K had bridged the gap between being downright dominant and utterly atrocious so quickly that it was almost something at which to marvel. One would be hard-pressed to find a more schizophrenic stretch for a pitcher, made even more mystifying when he threw eight shutout innings at Cleveland two starts later.
That outing began a nine-start run in which Matsuzaka was 4-1 with a 2.86 ERA. Of course, he followed that up with nine more starts in which he went 1-3 with a 5.95 ERA. Dr. Jekyll, meet Mr. Hyde.
As exasperating as it has been to watch, the sheer fact that Matsuzaka could completely shut down an opponent on occasion suggests that there is at least some reason for optimism going forward.
Health has a lot to do with it. It’s something Matsuzaka hasn’t had much of since the World Baseball Classic fiasco of two years ago. If it's all systems go in 2011, chances are he will frustrate, but he will also impress. He has that ability. It’s in there.
It’s up to Matsuzaka to coax it out.
Which Daisuke Matsuzaka will we see in 2011? Leave your thoughts below.
