A true weapon is Matt Waldon’s knuckleball, but only if he uses it. Sorry to sound too much like Yogi Berra, but over the course of two starts, Waldron gave up just one earned run while relying largely on the knuckler.
The only player in the Majors who can now throw a knuckleball went away from it on Friday night at Petco Park against the Blue Jays, and that calculated move cost him. To begin a brief three-game homestand against Toronto, Waldron gave up five runs in the first two innings, and the Friars’ offensive performance was equally lackluster, as they lost 5-1.
Early in the inning, Waldron was harmed by a sinker and a 4-seam fastball. In the first inning, he gave Justin Turner a solo home run. The second inning was when things truly got tough. Toronto led 5-0 after Waldron gave up four runs in an inning on six hits and a walk, with just one of those hits coming via a knuckleball. Using his secret weapon again, he retired nine of the next ten batters he faced after that.
Unfortunately, the Friars bats were once more sound asleep, and the deficit was already too big to overcome. In the bottom of the third inning, Fernando Tatis Jr. hit a solo home run off Toronto starter Yariel Rodriguez. The lone other opportunity for San Diego to score came one inning earlier.
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