Edinson Volquez threw 118 pitches in going seven innings during yesterday's 9-0 Reds win against the Cubs. At 24, that kind of usage in a game that was safely in hand naturally conjures up memories of the ruined arms of Kerry Wood and Mark Prior. It did for Nick Friedell of Big League Stew, anyway, but I think there's a pretty big difference between the two cases. 118 pitches is a lot, especially since the Reds and their pen are off today, but it's a high for Volquez on the season and, on average, he hasn't been unduly abused in his starts. He's on pace for the neighborhood of 190 innings pitched, well below the marks posted by Wood and Prior under Baker. Additionally, when Baker came to Chicago, Wood already had a history of arm problems and Prior was a neophyte.
Volquez is a new name but he's hardly the owner of an untested right arm. He threw 153 and 178 innings in 2006 and 2007, respectively, so 190 wouldn't be a major jump in usage. In fact, it's right in line with what you'd expect for him. That doesn't mean that Baker won't wind up putting too much stress on his arm, it just means that he hasn't done it yet.
Baker's gotten a lot of scorn in these parts, most of it well deserved, but I just don't see it in this case. He's been fairly judicious with Johnny Cueto as well which seems that Baker's history is creating issues that the present doesn't back up.
ADVERTISEMENT
_thumbnail.jpg "NASCAR Cowboy Hats")
