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How should managers handle Padres' Chris Paddack?

NBC Sports EDGE's Colin Henderson breaks down how effective Chris Paddack can be when he's at his best, but wonders if he can consistently perform at a high level.

Video Transcript

COLIN HENDERSON: Padres' [? ready ?] Chris Paddack threw a nice game on Friday, throwing five innings of two-run ball against the Reds, giving up six hits and two walks while striking out a season high 11 batters. He tossed 55 of 87 pitches for strikes and induced 19 whiffs, 11 on his changeup, to finish with an excellent 39% called strikes plus whiff rate. This improved his record on the year to 4 and 5 with a 4.10 ERA, 1.18 whip, and 68 strikeouts in 64 innings pitched.

But with Blake Snell not yet living up to expectations for San Diego, Paddack has been a nice steady presence in the Padres rotation, giving up more than three runs in only two of his 13 starts. However, there are some red flags in his game. While the 25-year-old continues to show great control, walking only 5.3% of the batters he has faced, which is top 10% in the league, he has not yet showed an ability to consistently get strikeouts at an elite level.

He's also not going particularly deep into games. This is thanks in large part to his age and the pitching restrictions that come with it, but also his limited arsenal, as he only throws three pitches. This has been exposed as he goes later into games, as his ERA from the sixth inning on is over [? 8. ?] He has yet to pitch more than six innings. Until Paddack finds a better strikeout pitch or adds a fourth pitch to his repertoire, his value will be limited. But on a good team, and preferably against weaker opponents, Paddack can be a great spot start as managers look to chase wins.