The Twins are in dire need of pitching. This is not up for debate. Surely, then many Twins fans must have been excited to see Sam Deduno tear up the World Baseball Classic, starting three games, pitching 13 innings and allowing only one run. He had a 17/5 K/BB ratio. Lights out.
Many people seem to be excited about this breakthrough, not the least of which are the Twins front office. The way it sounds, Deduno may have pitched his way into a rotation spot. How much should we read into his performance?
Not much, I would have to postulate. You know how everyone says that you can’t put much stock into spring training numbers? There are two reasons for that. First, there is the small sample size. 13 innings does not a season make. Also, the talent in Spring is diluted, a statement that could be made about WBC rosters as well. Sure, he pitched against the US, and in the Championship game, but he also started against Spain, which is the approximately level of the St. Paul Saints.
So while his WBC was promising, the numbers should be weighted the same as any other spring numbers. If anything, the Twins should be even more wary of their young Dominican pitcher. They have been without him in camp for weeks. How is he developing? How will he work with the catchers? It would be nice if Deduno could translate his international success to the majors this season, but I don’t think we should rely on it.
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