28 years old (29 in August)
9th Major League Season
6'3" 205 pounds
Bats L/Throws L
The Good: When he's on, he looks like a Cy Young contender. Strikes out over a batter per inning over the course of his career. In 2007, he had a 3.56 ERA. Almost un-hittable versus lefties, as they haven't had a BAA over .210 in the past 3 years. Re-dedicated himself this winter, spending all winter in Arizona working out with Randy Johnson's former trainers. Is being mentored throughout camp by Johan Santana. Low three-quarters arm slot. Was throwing 92-93 MPH fastball this spring (up from 88-89 last year), and has late tailing action. Slider is effective versus lefties.
The Bad/ugly: When he's off, he looks like a lost puppy. Came into camp last year overweight and had knee pain that he couldn't pitch through. Shut it down and had surgery in September. You want to know how he pitches? He walked close to a batter an inning last year, and right-handed hitters hit over .300 against him last year. He has no command, his mechanics have been inconsistent/not repeatable, and loses focus easily. Also throws a slider and a change up, neither of which are effective vs right-handers.
Role: In the middle of a three year, 36 million dollar deal (who exactly were we bidding against Omar when you raised the offer from 30 million)? He is the #3 starter on paper, and a lot of people think the season hinges on how he performs. After I watched him in spring training, I hopped on his bandwagon, but after watching a couple of his spring training stats, I'm beginning to realize it is still "same ol' Ollie".
My Projected Stats: 160 innings, 13 wins, 4.40 ERA, 1.45 WHIP, 150 Ks, 80 Walks.
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