The Mariners and Rangers experience the best and worst of pitching efficiency
James Paxton threw 78 pitches in eight innings, while Chi Chi Gonzalez threw 124 pitches in 4 2/3 innings
By
Mike Axisa
•
1 min read
In the age of pitch counts, efficiency is a crucial part of a pitcher's game. Most pitchers get the hook around 100 pitches, which on a good day could mean seven innings. Teams are trying to keep their top hurlers healthy, so less is more when it comes to pitches thrown.
Thursday night, Mariners southpaw James Paxton (against the Royals) and Rangers righty Chi Chi Gonzalez (against the Twins) had polar opposite nights in terms of efficiency. Here are their inning-by-inning pitch totals:
| Paxton | Gonzalez | |
| 1st Inning | 8 pitches | 25 pitches |
| 2nd Inning | 9 pitches (17 total) | 22 pitches (47 total) |
| 3rd Inning | 6 (23) | 17 (64) |
| 4th Inning | 5 (28) | 34 (98) |
| 5th Inning | 7 (35) | 26 (124) |
| 6th Inning | 11 (46) | |
| 7th Inning | 11 (57) | |
| 8th Inning | 21 (78) |
Yes, that's right. Paxton threw 35 total pitches in his first five innings while Gonzalez threw 124 pitches in five innings. Actually, Gonzalez threw 124 pitches in 4 2/3 innings; he didn't get the last out of the fifth.
Paxton averaged 3.25 pitches per out Thursday. Gonzalez? He averaged 8.86 pitches per out. Yikes.
The last pitcher to throw 120-plus pitches while failing to complete five full innings is the now-retired Ryan Dempster. He threw 127 pitches in 4 2/3 innings as a member of the Red Sox in a start against the Twins back in 2013. Gonzalez is only the second Rangers pitcher to do it. Bobby Witt threw 122 pitches in 4 2/3 innings against the Tigers back in 1992.
As for Paxton, the last pitcher to leave a game after eight innings despite throwing fewer than 80 pitches was Alex Wood of the Dodgers last September. Wood threw 78 pitches in eight innings against the Rockies. Jordan Zimmermann and Jose Quintana are the only other pitchers to do it since 2008.
Usually when a pitcher throws 78 pitches in eight innings, he goes back out for the complete game. Mariners skipper Scott Servais opted to go to closer Steve Cishek with his team up 3-2, and, sure enough, the Royals rallied for the walk-off win (KC 4, SEA 3). The decision to remove Paxton is ripe for second guessing.
Gonzalez allowed four runs on nine hits and five walks in his 4 2/3 innings. Sounds like a grueling night. A dangerous night too. Throwing 124 pitches is not automatically a bad thing if the pitches are stress free and spread out over eight or nine innings. Cramming 124 intense pitches into less than five innings is tough, though. That's a grind. Gonzalez's Rangers lost to the Twins (MIN 10, TEX 1).
