30 A's in 30 Days – Vin Mazzaro

Acquired: Drafted in 3rd round (2005).
Contract: One year thru 2010.
Position: Starting pitching depth for Oakland. Starting pitcher for AAA-Sacramento

Projected ERA: 4.47

Over/Under: My family and I have been in the stands on two separate occasions when Mazzaro was on the mound. In those two games, his ERA is a robust 12.86. (Full disclosure: the last time I saw him was in a spring training game this past Saturday, but I'm counting the three earned runs he gave up in two innings since I paid for my family's tickets.)

Mazzaro made his Major League debut on June 2 and promptly shut out the White Sox for 6.1 innings, picking up the win. Five days later, he defeated Baltimore on a combined five-hit shutout. In his next 15 starts, his ERA was over 6.00. Mazzaro's a sinkerball pitcher whose maddening tendency to overthrow caused his stuff to flatten out. If he goes back to trusting himself, I like the UNDER. Unless a spot opens up in the rotation, though, most of his 2010 will be spent with the Rivercats.

By the Numbers: 6 – On August 2, 2009, I was in attendance for Mazzaro's start against the Blue Jays. The first six hitters reached base (walk, home run, double, walk, walk, double) as Toronto cruised to a 7-2 win. This really put a damper on "Rickey Henderson banner day".

Surefire 2010 Prediction: Earlier this spring, Mazzaro stated that his surname is pronounced "muh-ZAIR-oh", as opposed to "muh-ZAR-oh". This will be the most interesting news item about him all season.

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