Jarrod Washburn was enjoying one of the best seasons in his career until being traded to the Tigers. His ERA (2.64) and WHIP (1.07) would have set career-bests, and he's 34 years-old. Since the trade, though, he's come a bit unraveled. Those two rate stats read 6.81 and 1.41, respectively, as a member of the Tigers. Team that bit of information with Thursday's news that he'll be skipping a start due to his bum knee, and one might conclude his dip in production is directly related. That's actually not the case, though, as Washburn's been dealing with this injury all season. In fact, skipping Washburn's next start was his own idea, because it has already worked once in 2009.
"I got skipped once earlier in Seattle, and it quieted it down a little bit, so that the pain level was tolerable," Washburn said. "So we decided to give it another try."The left-hander stated that most doctors had told him he likely has some damaged cartilage in the knee, so it's not going away.
Armando Galarraga will take Washburn's turn on the mound this time through, and the plan is to have Washburn jump right back in next time around.
As for the idea that simply skipping a start will get him straightened out, if you look at Washburn's game log, the numbers support this notion. In his two starts before being skipped in late May for Seattle, Washburn had allowed 14 hits, six walks and 10 earned runs in 11 innings (an ERA of 8.18). After he got the extra rest, he came back to throw 13 innings in his next two starts. He only allowed 13 hits, two walks and two earned runs (an ERA of 1.38).
If his knee is really feeling the same as it has been all season, this could be just what the doctor ordered and get Washburn back on track for the final stretch run of the season, as the Tigers look to lock down the AL Central -- where they currently hold a 4 1/2-game lead over surging Minnesota.
