If we've learned anything about Ray Searage in the last 2 seasons, we've learned that he has been able to turn around the careers of players appearing to be on the wrong side of prime. He's also been able to help develop young talent to make them productive at the major league level. In some regards, Searage took a staff compiled of mainly regurgitated pitchers and a few home grown guys and turned them into one of the best pitching staffs in the league.
Look no further than AJ Burnett, Francisco Liriano, Mark Melancon, Jason Grilli, Jeanmar Gomez, Vin Mazarro, Tony Watson, Justin Wilson, and maybe even Charlie Morton and you can see the fruits of Searage's labor.
It was reported today that Daisuke Matsuzaka asked to be released from the Indians after spending significant time on their AAA club. He's 32 and hasn't pitched in the major leagues since 2012 when he pitched terribly over 11 starts with Boston before being released. That season, he went 1-7 with an ERA of 8.28.
Matsuzaka signed a minor league contract with the Indians in March of this year. In 19 starts with AAA Columbus, he's 5-8 with a 3.92 ERA. However, in Matsuzaka's last 8 starts, he's pitched 7 innings 7 times and posted a 2.50 ERA during that span. It appears Dice-K has become frustrated by not receiving a big league promotion and asked to be released by the Indians. And he received his wish today.
Matsuzaka would provide quality, experienced depth now and would be a nice addition to the expanded roster in September. Thinking further down the road, he could be a perfect project for Ray Searage to tinker with over the winter. If anyone is capable of turning Matsuzaka into a quality starter again, Ray Searage is a guy that comes to mind. You'd have to believe Matsuzaka would be a great low risk, high reward signing.
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