Willis > Bastardo, Venters Against Lefties

Dontrelle Willis's numbers against lefties last season were better than either of these men's.What triggered when you heard the Phillies signed (lefty starter reliever) Dontrelle Willis? Did you start visualizing the herky-jerky, moving parts windup – a trademark that has changed out of necessity over the years – and seeing exactly how it could be so deceptive to a lefthanded hitter?If utilized properly, Willis has a real shot to succeed as a bullpen arm. His control finally dropped to a manageable level in 2011, and for one more year than that he’s been retiring lefties at will.Lefthanded batters have hit .178 off Willis since 2010. The deeper you dig, the more evidence you find that Willis doesn’t just have a chance to be elite in left-on-left situations… he already is.Let’s take a look at the 2011 seasons of Willis, Antonio Bastardo and Jonny Venters against strictly lefthanded batters. Column one is batting average and column two is OPS (on-base plus slugging percenta...