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BP Annual Player Comments

Year		Comment
2011		So short of pitching were the Dodgers that they broke camp with not one but two Zombie Ortizes. Russ Ortiz was the one who had put up a 6.56 ERA in over 300 innings from 2005-2009; luckily, he was waxed within two weeks of Opening Day.
2008		"Near . . . far . . . whereeeeeeeever you are, I believe that my contract goes ooooooonnnnnn." Ortiz will miss the 2008 season following Tommy John surgery, denying us the chance to see him pitch for four other teams while still being paid by the Diamondbacks, whose four-year, $33 million deal with Ortiz runs through the end of the season. Those of you annoyed that we've put a C?line Dion song in your head should note that the composition in question is from a movie in which a large, expensive item filled with food broke apart and sunk quickly without being used much. Apology accepted.
2007		Ortiz pitched so badly in early 2006 that the Diamondbacks chose to eat the remaining two years and $20 million left on his contract and spare themselves and their fans anymore pain. The Orioles picked him up, reasoning that he had pitched well under Mazzone in the past and might do so again, a nice thought, but wrong. American League batters played Home Run Derby with Ortiz`s offerings. You would think that the resounding success of this move would have influenced the decision to pick up Jaret Wright. A free agent at this writing, Ortiz will no doubt be offered at least a spring training invite by some team hoping to recapture the glorious spirit of 2001.
2006		If denial, as Robert Bly asserts, is the "na?ve person`s inability to face the harsh facts of life," then the Diamondbacks were certainly in denial about Russ Ortiz, who had been offering harsh facts for a few years before signing with Arizona. Take away years of good run support, good defense, good pitchers` parks, and a "resurgence" under Leo Mazzone, and you`re left with a replacement-level pitcher with a Victor Zambrano-sized walk problem that not even Rick Peterson would claim to be able to fix.
2005		He's the quintessence of a tolerable third starter. Ortiz has been blessed with capable teammates throughout his career, which is in part why he sports that comely .632 career winning percentage. In a vacuum, he's a few ticks above average and has never missed a start in his career. That's valuable, but he's not the quasi-ace some see. You'd expect worse from a pitcher who's not noted for his strikeout abilities and also walks a batter every two innings. His groundball-flyball ratio has been down modestly since arriving in Atlanta, and this past season his home run rate finally reflected that. Something to keep in mind as he enters his post-prime seasons. For some reason, the Dbacks saw fit to sign him for $33 million. He'll be critical to their rousing charge for 70 wins.
2004		Ortiz is sort of the anti-Maddux. His fastball-curve combo is plenty good, but he gets tentative on the mound, and throws far more pitches than he really needs to. His hits allowed were lower than they should have been based on his strikeout rate, his walk totals routinely push the century mark, and he's got a lot of mileage on that arm, so he's a good candidate to regress this year. Schuerholz deserves credit for disposing of Damian Moss when his value was at its highest, but if Ortiz is the Opening Day starter, the Braves could be in for a long season.
2003		Ortiz may have regressed a little from his breakthrough 2001, but the Giants aren’t complaining about what he gave them: a solid start every fifth day from the beginning of April to the end of October, plus the best hitting of any pitcher in the league. The declining strikeout rate isn’t a good sign for those who expect him to take another step up in the near future. Neither is his eyebrow-raising 2002 workload: 4,017 pitches in the regular- and post-seasons, by far a career high, and second in the majors only to Randy Johnson. On the other hand, joining the Cox/Mazzone pitching factory in Atlanta is usually a good sign for any pitcher.
2002		A big guy who just looks like a workhorse, Ortiz improved his control last season and made fewer mistakes, leading to his best season as a Giant. He didn't exceed 121 pitches all season, thanks to a better job of throwing strikes and the presence of some great relievers. Ortiz could shave a bit more off of his walk rate and move to the fringes of the Cy Young Award race.
2001		Russ Ortiz was pitching like Don Knotts on a Ritalin binge for the first half of the season. The only thing rising faster than the line drives he was giving up was his ERA. During May and June, he threw perhaps ten pitches that didn't come back faster than they went in, and most of those ten were return throws from Estalella after walks. In the second half, Ortiz found his release point and threw pretty well, posting a 3.22 ERA after the All-Star break. Ortiz has worked a fair number of innings but was very strong in the second half and showed no signs of fatigue down the stretch. He could be a very capable #2 starter for a few years.
2000		The good news is very good. Ortiz improved in most areas, winning 18 games in his first full season in the majors and holding opposing hitters to a .244 batting average. The bad news is ominous, though. He threw 207 2/3 innings, up from his previous seasonal high of 141 2/3. They were tough innings, putting Ortiz among the league leaders in Pitcher Abuse Points. Ortiz is simultaneously the team's rotation ace, a pitcher with major control problems and a significant injury risk. All of that could have been said about Shawn Estes two years ago: he’s gone 18-22 with an 4.98 ERA since then.
1999		Have the Giants actually developed a pitcher in their farm system? Ortiz started as a reliever, so he hasn't had to carry a heavy workload yet. His control is improving gradually, he's a year younger than Shawn Estes, and his arm is a lot healthier. He's not there yet, but by Giants' standards, he's already a stud.
1998		Eye-popping strikeout totals have had fans drooling, but the Giants made him a starter in ’97 and nothing went right. If Ortiz becomes more comfortable in his new role, he could still be a good one. Or he could return to the bullpen and be great. Or he could be a flop; after all, you never know with pitchers.
1997		Struck out 3.74 guys per inning at San Jose, so the Giants decided to move him to Shreveport. That number should come down under 3 there, and his walk numbers will likely step up a bit. Could be the next Rob Dibble, could be the next Brad Pennington. I can’t call this one.

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PITCHf/x Pitcher Profile

A Collaboration between BrooksBaseball.net and Baseball Prospectus - Pitch classifications provided by Pitch Info LLC

Although he has not thrown an MLB pitch in 2024, Russ Ortiz threw 2,016 pitches that were tracked by the PITCHf/x system between 2007 and 2010, all of them occuring in Spring Training. In 2010, he relied primarily on his Fourseam Fastball (91mph), also mixing in a Sinker (91mph), Curve (78mph) and Change (84mph). He also rarely threw a Slider (81mph).