Jimenez reverts to bad form in loss to Red Sox
The mystery of Ubaldo Jimenez continued Friday night in the Indians' 7-5 loss to the Boston Red Sox. The enigmatic right-hander was once again his own worst enemy as he once again failed to pitch five innings.
In perhaps his worst start of a so far dismal season for him personally, Jimenez gave up seven runs on nine hits in just 4 1/3 innings. He also walked five, hit a batter and threw a wild pitch.
Jimenez threw 99 pitches and only got 13 outs. It was a performance painfully similar to most of his other six starts this season. The common denominators are high pitch counts, falling behind in counts, an inability to consistently throw strikes, and an early exit.
Jimenez is now 3-3 with a 5.18 ERA, and once again looks totally lost as he tries to regain the form he had as an all-star for Colorado in 2010. Making his implosion Friday night even more frustrating for club officials is that in his previous start it looked like Jimenez had finally begun to make progress in his attempt to turn his season around.
In out-pitching Texas' Yu Darvish in a 4-2 win over the Rangers on May 6, Jimenez pitched seven scoreless innings on two hits. .Friday, in his first start after the Texas start, Jimenez reverted to his previous form, in which he struggled to throw strikes, and was out of the game early.
"When you struggle with your control, velocity is not an issue," said Manager Manny Acta "You're not going to get people out."
In his last three starts, Jimenez has pitched 4 2/3 innings and allowed 7 runs, followed by 7 scoreless innings on two hits, followed by 4 1/3 innings and 7 runs. It's that kind of inconsistency that has plagued Jimenez all season.
