I know you’re all excited about Johnny Cueto. And in a way, I am too. I would laugh if Chris Berman ever called him Cueto, Start the Reactor. He isn’t the most-hyped prospect ever either. He’s just polished, and he has three restaurant quality pitches.
BOURDAIN WANTS A TASTE OF THE SLIDER!!!
But there are two reasons as to why “The Reactor” will go through the darkness. And both are rather obvious, Hyperbole Jack.
1) Sample Size.
You can read a scouting report. You can look at video of spring training and minor league baseball. But until you go up against someone live? You just won’t know how he rolls. And Johnny has only one career major league start. One.
Remember when Jeff Weaver rolled up into the bigs as a Detroit Tiger? He was awesome! How about Cal Eldred as a Milwaukee Brewer? Golden freaking God!
Hell, Jaime Navarro had a 2.59 ERA in his first eight starts. Johnny Cueto may be great through May, but people are going to pick up just exactly how he rolls. And in a bandbox like the Great American Ballpark?
That would be no bueno. But even if the Johnny Cueto story doesn’t have a backlash from hitters? There is another problem that Cueto’s gonna have to deal with.
2) Dusty Baker
Dusty Baker is an anachronism. He comes from back in the bday where managers rode their pitchers until they broke down. He say what Whitey Herzog did to young John Tudor and smiled.
He wanted pitchers of his own to destroy. And in Chicago? He got them.
Kerry Wood is now a closer because he can’t handle warming up and not piching an inning every day. Mark Prior is looking for redemption in San Diego, if he would ever get off the disabled list. And Carlos Zambrano might have handled the physical strain, but his psyche is not the same.
Johnny Cueto is just another victim to Dusty Bonaduce.
Now I’m not here to hate on the debut. It was an awesome start. And unless he faces the Brewers, I hope he can be Rockin’ like Dokken. It’s just, he’s in the middle of the minefield. And if he can’t keep his head on a swivel, he’s gonna get blown up.
Patience. He’ll be The Reactor soon enough.
