Detroit Tigers: Let’s Look At Akil Baddoo’s Strikeouts

Akil Baddoo Strikeout Six

There’s not a lot of mystery or deception here. Frankie Montas comes at Akil Baddoo with five consecutive sinkers, all at roughly the same velocity. We see Baddoo square to bunt for the first time this season, perhaps because he is beginning to feel the weight of his mini-slump, or maybe he’s just trying to keep the defense honest. He pulls back in time on the first pitch to take a ball, and then on the second pitch he’s trying to push a bunt down the third-base line, but doesn’t quite get the bat angled right and hits a harmless foul.

The next sinker is a relatively easy take up and in to get into a favorable count, but then we once again see Baddoo swing through a seemingly driveable pitch, though it is hard and a little elevated. And then Montas breaks out the moneymaker. A nasty 96-MPH sinker that looks exactly like Ball 2, but then swings back to catch the inside corner. Baddoo didn’t have a chance.