Last week, I wrote this post, talking about Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher James McDonald and his efficiency and progression throughout the year. I came to the conclusion that he was very inefficient up until June 22nd, when he kind of turned a corner. He was very good in his first 3 starts after that date, and he made another one on Monday against the Braves, and it was probably his best of the year. His pitch f/x for that start are here. So let's revisit this subject again. Here's his 2011 pitch results from all of his starts before June 22nd. and here are the updated results from his 5 starts after the 22nd: You can see the difference there. All of his strike percentages are up, which has brought all his swing percentages up, and his whiff rates have also increased substantially. He is a completely different pitcher when he has his control, and he's been just phenomenal in his last 5 starts. In those 5 outings, McDonald has a 1.52 ERA with 32 strikeouts and only 10 walks...
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