A.J. Pierzynski probably won't get any relief from the boos as the Sox head from Los Angeles to San Francisco to begin interleague play. Then again, if his performance against the Angels is any indication, he thrives when he has to play the villain.
Pierzynski went 3-for-5 and scored the winning run in
the finale against the Angels, and went 8-for-15 with three walks and three doubles over the four-game series. Over the last three weeks, if you break his performance apart, he's performing markedly better against cities that generally loathe him:
- vs. Minnesota and Los Angeles: .519/.581/741 (27 AB)
- vs. Seattle and Toronto: .125/.222/.188 (16 AB)
Small sample size? Probably, but I wouldn't put it past Pierzynski to channel his inner wrestler and step up his game when he has an audience to piss off.
We'll see this theory get tested over the next three games, as A.J. returns to the city to play the team that acquired him in one of the most lopsided trades in baseball history. The Giants traded for the privilege of adding Pierzynski to the clubhouse mix, and it only cost them Joe Nathan, Francisco Liriano and Boof Bonser. And if you factor in opportunity cost, the Twins also were able to find regular playing time for Joe Mauer.
Pierzynski says
the reports of his belligerence are greatly exaggerated:
"Just a lot of the stories that came out weren't true, more than
anything," Pierzynski said. "The story where I supposedly kicked the
trainer [Stan Conte] in the [groin], I think if I would have done that
in Scottsdale Stadium in front of 15,000 people, it would have come out
before I was gone. The story about me playing cards and not going over
the hitters is not true.
"I told them I'd be there in two minutes, and I came over there two
minutes later. The story about me telling hitters what [pitches] were
coming, anyone who knows me or sees me at all knows I'm not ever going
to do that. I'm the last [person] to ever do that."
While it will be the first game A.J. has played against the team that dumped him during the regular season, it won't be the first time he's gotten digs in at them. Remember
spring training of 2005:
A.J. Pierzynski hasn't let 2004 go just yet. Before the Giants beat
the White Sox 6-5 on Monday, Pierzynski promised $100 to any Chicago teammate
who homered off Brett Tomko. Joe Borchard scored a C-note in the second inning.
Pierzynski's biggest rivals in the clubhouse -- Tomko and Matt Herges -- are no longer with the Giants, but he still has plenty of people he'll want to show up. He certainly has momentum on his side to help him achieve that end.
Entering tonight's game, Pierzynski leads the Sox in batting average (.315) and doubles (14), and he's riding an eight-game hitting streak. He's second in on-base percentage (.373) and extra-base hits (17).
But he doesn't just look good in comparison to his teammates, most of whom are slumping, struggling and scuffling. He's also on pace for some personal bests:
- Walks: He has 10 walks and 10 strikeouts, and on pace for 40 of each. He's never walked more than 25 times in a season.
- Doubles: He's on pace for 56, which would be a White Sox record. More realistically, his personal best is 35, and he's topped out at 24 with the Sox.
- OBP: His career best is .365 in 2003, the only time he's topped .335 as a full-time player.
Considering how streaky he's been this season, I wouldn't bet on him legitimately threatening any of those quarter-season projections -- unless the Nintendo DS has dramatically improved his strike zone judgment.
Still, even the most pessimistic of prognosticators can't find many reasons to complain about Pierzynski's start -- especially since he set or came close to setting career lows in most offensive statistical categories last year. That he's had a hotter seven weeks than at any other point last season makes me feel a little better about the extension he signed last September.
I still feel the Sox jumped the gun and then some, but his efforts of trying to persuade me otherwise are greatly appreciated.
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Minor league roundup:- Charlotte 6, Syracuse 5
- Lance Broadway gave up baserunners galore -- nine hits, four walks and a homer over six innings. One run was unearned, and he struck out three.
- Adam Russell pitched one scoreless inning, and Jason Childers pitched two for the save.
- Thomas Collaro went 2-for-3 with two homers and three RBI; he has four homers in five games with Charlotte.
- Dewayne Wise went 4-for-4, and Brad Eldred went deep.
- Jacksonville 6, Birmingham 2
- Ricardo Nanita went 2-for-3 with an RBI.
- Clayton Richard gave up five runs on nine hits and two walks over five innings.
- Derek Rodriguez and Jon Link pitched three scoreless innings combined.
- Winston-Salem 4, Lynchburg 3 (10 innings)
- John Ely gave up three runs over five innings on four hits and four walks. He did strike out seven.
- Lee Cruz went 3-for-4, and Javier Colina and Paulo Orlando had two hits apiece.
- Steven Spurgeon pitched three scoreless innings in relief, and Ryan Rote picked up the win with two shutout innings.
- Kannapolis vs. Delmarva PPD