Gord MacKenzie
Chronicle-Herald Sports
Offseason acquisition Scott Puffer must be shaking his head after watching his last three starts go up in smoke. The $12 million man enters May still looking for his first win of the season. His 0-1 record belies otherwise sterling statistics, including a 2.25 ERA and 28 strikeouts in 32 innings pitched.
Over his last three starts, Puffer has held opponents to a .212 batting average, with only one extra-base hit allowed in 19 innings. The staff ace has a 1.42 ERA – and three no-decisions to show for it.
Meanwhile, the bullpen has been experiencing a choke of Biblical proportions. In the 6 2/3 innings they’ve thrown in Puffer’s last three games, they’re 0-3 with a 17.41 ERA. Even worse, the ‘pen has completely self-immolated in the ninth inning, allowing at least (that's right, at least) three runs in each appearance. The ugliness looks like this (and remember, these are 9th inning stats only):
IP H R ER BB K ERA AVG OBP SLG OPS
1.2+ 11 12 12 4 1 90.00 .687 .739 1.688 2.427
Puffer shrugs it off, saying “hey, we all have runs of bad luck some days.” But it’s clear that if the Atlantics want to keep pace with the likes of Boston and New York, they’re going to need a bullpen that’s more like firemen and less like arsonists.