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Cappy on the Way Back?
It wasn’t so long ago that Chris Capuano was an All Star “twirler” for the Brewers. But Cappy blew out his elbow — for a second time in his career — two years ago and subsequently endured a second Tommy John surgery. How many times have we read media accounts noting that few pitchers have made it back from a second such procedure? It seems that is a standard part of every story written about Capuano’s quest. But in four starts, CC has been nothing short of tremendous, posting a 0.79 ERA.
While he has put up some strong numbers, Capuano has posted them in the minor leagues. I hope that earns him a shot with the big club because, well, I am a sucker for a good story. But I have very low expectations for a guy coming back off those surgeries and throwing in the mid-80s.
Of course, it is not the raw speed of the pitch that solely matters, but the ability to change speeds and hit locations that will largely determine success. However, the margin for error is so much finer when a guy is throwing 85 instead of 95 (or even 90); a harder thrower has a greater margin for error. That might not reveal itself in the minors, but in MLB the slightest mistakes will be turned around and lit up.
So, by all means, bring Cappy home. Give him a shot–not much to lose at the moment for Milwaukee. The team could probably use some feel-good vibe right about now. But don’t expect CC to be an elixir. That’s not fair to him or, probably, realistic.
2 Comments
I don’t think velocity is so much the issue with Capuano. I can’t imagine Jamie Moyer throws any harder and he’s survived this long. A bigger question is his durability. The track record on that score is almost nonexistent.
Moyer is the exception; very few guys are able to get away with what he does. Most guys without at least a little juice get lit up unless they are very fine with their command(and/or very “crafty”). When a pitcher loses even average velocity without locating pinpoint command or the craftiness of Jason Bourne, he often ends gets lit up (see Davis, Doug and Suppan, Jeff).