Is Patience Finally Paying Off?

Wow, it’s been awhile since I posted here. Sorry about that. Sometimes life gets busy and it’s hard to keep up with everything. When that happens, hobbies are always the first thing to get neglected. Thanks for being patient. Now on to my first post in forever…

I used to be a fan of Daniel Cabrera. His intimidating size and raw power made him a dreamboat of a pitching prospect. The problem is he never gained any type of consistency. He would come close to a no-hitter one game and then walk every hitter in the lineup in his next start. Anyone without the patience of a monk became irritated at the mere mention of his name.

If Cabrera had been on a winning team, he would have run out of chances to stick in the rotation a long time ago. Good thing for him that the O’s are stuck in a 10 season losing streak. I wouldn’t have protested if the O’s had decided to trade Daniel Cabrera, but how much could we really expect to get back for him? The answer is not much. Not once it became apparent that he was an enigma. So the Orioles kept giving him the ball, hoping he would figure it out. We’re a losing franchise anyway, so why not let him take his lumps and see if something special happens. Right now I’m wondering if that patience is starting to payoff.

Last night, against the Kansas City Royals, Daniel Cabrera had his most dominant start of the season and one of the best of his career. He threw a complete game, allowing 3 H, 1 R, 1 BB and 7 SO. To make it more impressive, he kept the ball on the game all night - 18 of his outs came by groundballs and only 2 were flyouts. I’m still not convinced that he’ll be an ace. Yes, he’s got the stuff, but he still isn’t consistent enough for that. Look to his start on April 28th for proof, as he walked 7 batters in 6 1/3 innings. With that being said, he has been much more consistent this year. Don’t look now, but Cabrera has rattled off 6 consecutive Quality Starts. If he keeps this up he could find himself as a long-term option for the Orioles. Of course, his success could also make him a trade candidate in July. He won’t be a free agent until 2011.