Well it could be awhile before we see Francisco Liriano return to form. I, for one, have been a believer in this guy all along, but I'm now coming to grips with the fact that it might be awhile before we see the "old" Liriano again.
In 3 big league starts since returning from injury, Liriano showed no signs of being the ace the Twins hoped he'd be:
vs. KC: 4.2 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 5 BB, 4 K
vs. CLE: 5 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 5 BB, 3 K
vs. OAK: 0.2 IP, 5 H, 6 ER, 3BB, 0 K
Not only was his ERA awful, but his peripherals were terrible as well. Sporting a WHIP of 2.71 and walking more than a batter per inning, the club decided to send Liriano back down to Triple-A Rochester.
Mission Accomplished: Liriano fixed.
Right?
Wrong.
The former phenom made his first minor league start last night for Rochester against Pawtucket, and his line looked eerily similar to his major league starts.
vs. PAW: 4.1 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 5 BB, 3 K
Again ... terrible ERA and WHIP above 2.00. Not good. It could be awhile before we see Liriano return to the big leagues at all, let alone expecting him to return to ace form. The 24-year old has some major problems he needs to get fixed. The ERA and WHIP are up, and the strikeouts are down. Not a good combination.
Its now safe to stay away from this guy in fantasy. He's too good to struggle like this forever, but the Twins will now be measuring his progress in "months," not "weeks." That means it'll be a good long while before we see the old Liriano again.
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