Daniel Cabrera Gets an 'F' for Frustrating

Calling Daniel Cabrera a pitcher is a formality. Although he stands atop the mound in the middle of a baseball diamond, a more apt term for the Baltimore Orioles right-hander is frustrating.  With a blazing fastball that is the envy of most Major League pitchers and quality, if not filthy, secondary pitches, Cabrera has never produced an ERA below 4.50. Also, despite topping 200 innings only once, he has been in the top 3 in the American League for walks allowed in each of his 4 Major League seasons.  If Cabrera had the tools but was consistently mediocre, it would be easy to write him off as being mentally unfit. However, he shows flashes of being a Hall-of-Famer. His magnum opus came in the 2006 season when he fell 2 outs short of throwing a no-hitter against the New York Yankees.  These are the outings that keep the Orioles dreaming of him becoming an ace. When Cabrera walks 5 batters in 3 innings, like he did in a Spring Training start a few weeks ago against the St. ... [link]