I've seen enough of Walker and Paxton

[PolarVortex]

Send them packing this winter. They are never going to be reliable pitchers at the MLB level. They tease you just enough to intrigue you, and then they mail it in for 3-4 starts (Walker) or get hurt and miss another month (Paxton).

Get rid of them.

 

[AceKeptic]

Did I read that right, how Taijuan-on couldn't even get out of the first tonight?

I sure hope he isn't coming back next year.

 

[SeattleCoug]

Problem is who would replace them? There is nothing on the FA market. Trading either of them would be selling low.
Also I'm expecting regression from Kuma and for the slow decline for Felix to continue. If we thought the rotation was bad this year, it could even worse next year

I get the frustration because neither seem like they have it between the ears. Just a tough spot for this organization.

 

[PolarVortex]

My God, Paxton fucking sucks.

 

[gohusk]

Walker sucks. I don't care how old he is. He's been up for a while and it's the same shit. He's a spastic pitcher and the only way he's going to have a future is in the bullpen. We should see if there's a sucker out there that's a taker and maybe we get something half-decent. This team is in really bad shape roster-wise. The producers are getting old and the young ones are mediocre at best.

 

[AceKeptic]

And tonight, he proves he sucks.

No sooner do we score the first run of the game, he shits himself and gives up two.

Typical Taijuan-On move!

 

[Banned 10x]

This dude went 5 innings and they're acting like it was a good start

 

[dude82]

I can see each of them getting one more year to see if they can A) Stay healthy; and B) Pitch well for a whole season. As much as people might not want to hear it, Walker is still 24 years old and has shown great stuff. His issue is lack of consistency with his command and I'm guessing there's a mental aspect to why that command comes and goes. My fear is that we'll give up on him, get too little in return for him and he'll be with his new team showing that consistency that has eluded him so far as a Mariner.

Paxton is flat-out snakebitten. The guy can't stay healthy and this year he got hurt at the worst possible time. He'd finally found the best arm slot to use and was pitching like he belongs here before a fluke line drive to his pitching arm put him on the DL for a while. He still has the opportunity with what's left of the season to get back in that groove, but that missed time set him and the team back. I think that the run he went on before getting hurt, and the fact that he's a lefty who can hit triple digits on the radar gun, will buy him another opportunity next season. He's got his arm slot figured out and he's probably in the best shape of his career. All he has to do between now and next season is avoid crossing paths with any black cats, breaking any mirrors or doing anything else that is considered bad luck and I think he'll get a shot at a spot in the rotation.

It is extremely frustrating that, for as much talent as these guys have and for as much promise as they've shown in the past, they aren't further along in their development, but dumping them means almost completely reworking the rotation. I think they're already going to be looking to fill the spots originally held by Karns and Miley this offseason and won't want to have to fill two more spots unless the replacements for Walker and/or Paxton come as part of any deal for them, which seems a bit unlikely at this point.

 

[JMR]

I thought Walker pitched fairly well last night. At the very least, it was leaps and bounds better than nearly all of his other recent performances. There was an opportunity to implode after walking the first 2 hitters on 9 pitches, but he mostly got it together to go 5 innings and get the win.

 

[dude82]

I thought Walker pitched fairly well last night. At the very least, it was leaps and bounds better than nearly all of his other recent performances. There was an opportunity to implode after walking the first 2 hitters on 9 pitches, but he mostly got it together to go 5 innings and get the win.

Yeah. His pitch count took a beating mainly from all of the foul balls Texas was hitting off of him. The A's were annoyingly persistent like that for years. You rack up a few 7-10 pitch at-bats in the first few innings and your pitch count is going to suffer.

 

[Anointed One]

I can see each of them getting one more year to see if they can A) Stay healthy; and B) Pitch well for a whole season. .

Which is smart... You don't give up on them now...

 

[PolarVortex]

Which is smart... You don't give up on them now...

I have. I see more of the same. If they were traded, of course they would turn out to be decent pitchers. That is usually the way it works with the Mariners. But if they stay here they will continue to be frustrating, irritating and under-achieving.

 

[Anointed One]

I have. I see more of the same. If they were traded, of course they would turn out to be decent pitchers. That is usually the way it works with the Mariners. But if they stay here they will continue to be frustrating, irritating and under-achieving.

Good thing we didn't give up on Randy Johnson... He wasn't anything to write home about his first few years w/ the club...

You make it sound like it's going to be so easy to trade them away and upgrade at those positions... Are you wanting to trade them away for immediate starts (veterans) that can help us win now or trade them away for prospects that might pan out for us in a few years...

 

[PolarVortex]

Good thing we didn't give up on Randy Johnson... He wasn't anything to write home about his first few years w/ the club...

You make it sound like it's going to be so easy to trade them away and upgrade at those positions... Are you wanting to trade them away for immediate starts (veterans) that can help us win now or trade them away for prospects that might pan out for us in a few years...

Ridiculous comparison. In RJ's second season with the Ms he had a 3.65 ERA, averaged 20 outs per start and was an All Star. Walker has a 4.64 ERA, averages 15.5 outs per start and was sent to the minors to work out issues.

Paxton can't be compared because he has yet to pitch a full season.

Hitting the Carbon River for Cohos. We'll argue more later, I'm sure.

 

[Anointed One]

We'll argue more later, I'm sure.

Doubt you'll want to today... For whatever reason...

 

[PolarVortex]

Doubt you'll want to today... For whatever reason...

My issue isn't much with what Paxton does when he is on the mound. My issue is with his frequent inability to take the mound.

 

[AceKeptic]

My issue isn't much with what Paxton does when he is on the mound. My issue is with his frequent inability to take the mound.

Hey, the less often he takes the mound, the less likely he is to show his piss-poor performance. We should be thankful for that!

 

[unlvmariners]

just pitched a gem, hope he is fixed.

 

[dude82]

just pitched a gem, hope he is fixed.

He seems to have taken well to the mechanical changes he's been working on with Stottlemyre so far. Of course, it's a lot easier to stick with it when you get the results he got tonight, but he very well could have let himself get frustrated by what happened early in his last start and started falling back into old habits. The more success he has with this new approach early on, the less likely he is to fall back on old, bad habits later.

I also think it was very important that Servais let him go out there after he lost the no-hitter to finish the game. His confidence level with his new approach would have gone up even if he'd only gone 7 innings, but nothing says "confidence booster" like letting a young pitcher finish a game in which he's pitched lights out. Of course, Servais' decision to let him finish it was made much easier by having 8 runs to work with, but Walker deserved to the finish it either way.

The bonus for the M's is that the bullpen got a full night off. Not that I think they'll need to use the pen much in game 3 with Kuma on the mound, but any time you can give your bullpen an extra, full night off down the stretch, it helps. They were already going to get Thursday off at home, so they got a bonus day's rest.

 

[PolarVortex]

He seems to have taken well to the mechanical changes he's been working on with Stottlemyre so far. Of course, it's a lot easier to stick with it when you get the results he got tonight, but he very well could have let himself get frustrated by what happened early in his last start and started falling back into old habits. The more success he has with this new approach early on, the less likely he is to fall back on old, bad habits later.

I also think it was very important that Servais let him go out there after he lost the no-hitter to finish the game. His confidence level with his new approach would have gone up even if he'd only gone 7 innings, but nothing says "confidence booster" like letting a young pitcher finish a game in which he's pitched lights out. Of course, Servais' decision to let him finish it was made much easier by having 8 runs to work with, but Walker deserved to the finish it either way.

The bonus for the M's is that the bullpen got a full night off. Not that I think they'll need to use the pen much in game 3 with Kuma on the mound, but any time you can give your bullpen an extra, full night off down the stretch, it helps. They were already going to get Thursday off at home, so they got a bonus day's rest.

Great game. Also just one game. What the team needs from him is a higher percentage of quality starts over the course of an entire season. Maybe he is on the verge of getting on one of his little rolls where he is close to dominant for a 4-5 game stretch. The timing would be awesome