I was working on a Ben Brown blog when this came across my desk and figured it’s worth recycling just so we can level set on who Jameson Taillon really is.
Some people hate him a lot.
Other people seriously over value him.
Personally I like to make fun of him for being a dork while also respecting that he’s the perfect middle of the rotation guy for this Cubs team for a couple reasons I like to call the 3 P’s of being a #3
- Predictability
- Pitches to contact
- Professionalism
Predictability: you’re getting at least 5.2 innings of baseball when he takes the mound. That’s almost a guarantee which means the bullpen rarely has to get more than 10 outs in a Jameson Taillon start. That’s huge when you’re serving as the middle rotation guy and you can keep the bullpen fresh. That helps keep things stabilized over the course of 162 games and 33 starts. And while there’s some boring aspects to his game, I’d gladly take the consistency over a higher ceiling for what he gets asked to do.
Pitches to contact: The Cubs #1 strength is its defense. I know the lineup rocks but the thing you can count on every day is elite defense and you want pitchers that constantly create contact. Walks are the worst thing you can do when having Swanson/Hoerner/PCA up the middle. You don’t need to overpower the opposing lineup and strikeout 10+ when you have that quality in the field. So embrace their strength by getting the opposing lineup to put the ball in play and keep the game moving.
Professionalism: This will sound simple but he never looks like an asshole. All his damage is done with nobody on base. He pounds the strike zone and keeps the game moving. The Cubs always have a chance to win when he takes the mound and that applies even when he doesn’t look good. He competes within the strikezone and doesn’t overthrow. He’s a classic veteran mercenary starting pitcher and most important is that he takes care of his body and can pitch every 5th game. All that rolls up into what I would call being a Professional and it’s a huge reason why I trust Jameson Taillon so much.
Is he the best?
Absolutely not.
Is he kinda weird?
Personally I think he’s super nice and sometimes that can be a little weird when you’re a starting pitcher in MLB because you don’t expect those guys to be weird.
But overall he’s exactly who we need him to be: Jameson Taillon.
A professional middle of the rotation starting pitcher that gives our lineup a chance every single time he takes the mound and for that reason I think he’s worth whatever the hell we’re paying him this year.
And if you don’t believe me then just go back and watch Ben Brown’s last two starts and tell me you don’t value well paced strike-throwing starters.
Thank you.
Now show Jameson a little more respect next time around please.
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