Results tagged ‘ Trevor Cahill ’
No Runs For You!
Should you take Justin Verlander, David Price, or Felix Hernandez as the first pitcher in your fantasy league? Well, the Mariners haven’t helped King Felix win many games due to their inability to score runs, Tampa Bay has a pretty pathetic offense, and Verlander has Miguel Cabrera and Prince Fielder to back him up. While Verlander, Price, and Hernandez will post similar ERA, WHIP, and strikeout totals, Verlander will tend to get the nod due to the added wins.
In 2012, Cliff Lee was 6-9 over 30 starts and 211 innings. He didn’t win his first game until July 4, his 14th start, after winning 17 games in 2011. Lee has already won two games in 2013, something that he couldn’t say he did last season until July 31 last year.
This year, the name is Stephen Strasburg. Strasburg has lost four games already in 2013. In 2012, he didn’t lose his fourth game until July 6. While wins are quite overrated in the statistical world, when a pitcher isn’t getting them, those who follow the sport feel like they may be doing something wrong.
Is Strasburg doing anything wrong?
| Year | Age | Tm | W | L | GS | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | SO | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 21 | WSN | 5 | 3 | .625 | 2.91 | 12 | 68.0 | 56 | 25 | 22 | 5 | 17 | 92 | 1.074 | 5.41 |
| 2011 | 22 | WSN | 1 | 1 | .500 | 1.50 | 5 | 24.0 | 15 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 24 | 0.708 | 12.00 |
| 2012 | 23 | WSN | 15 | 6 | .714 | 3.16 | 28 | 159.1 | 136 | 62 | 56 | 15 | 48 | 197 | 1.155 | 4.10 |
Over his career, Strasburg has won 67.7 percent of his decisions while posting a no-decision percentage of 31.2 percent. Nearly one-third of his starts have led to no-decisions, so in a given year, based on his first 45 starts of his career and 33 stars in a 162-game season, Strasburg would average a 15-7 record, a 2.93 ERA, a 1.09 WHIP, and a 4.67 K:BB. This season, Strasburg’s 3.16 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, and a 3.5 K:BB.
While Strasburg’s walks seem to be up a bit, his peripheral statistics show that there isn’t much that he can be held accountable for. His xFIP is up to 3.86 (his career xFIP is 2.68), so there may be something there, but most of the blame can be attributed to the bats when he starts. Only Kevin Slowey (0.75) and Joe Saunders (1.20) have lower run support than Strasburg (1.40) this season. At 1-4, Strasburg is a fantastic buy-low option in fantasy leagues for anyone unintelligent enough to trade him right now for this reason.
Other pitchers suffering from run support (RS) issues this season include:
Jeff Samardzija (3.03 ERA vs. 2.00 RS)
Trevor Cahill (3.60 ERA vs. 2.00 RS)
Madison Bumgarner (1.87 ERA vs. 2.60 RS)
Kris Medlen and Shelby Miller (2.16 ERA vs. 2.75 RS)
Clayton Kershaw (2.14 ERA vs. 2.80 RS)
Dodgers Can’t Dodge Confusion
Money, and lots of it, has been thrown around in the Los Angeles area since Frank McCourt sold the Dodgers to the Guggenheim group last season. The trade that brought Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Beckett, and Carl Crawford out west was just the beginning, as the team spent $159 million on Zack Greinke, bid against themselves by giving Brandon League $27.5 million to (possibly) steal the closer’s job from Kenley Jansen, and $61.7 million (including the $25.7 million posting fee) on Hyun-Jin Ryu, a 25-year-old, seven-year veteran of the Korean Baseball Organization.
With the addition of Greinke and Ryu, the Dodgers have a loaded starting rotation; however, is it too loaded?
Clayton Kershaw will lead the group as the ace and even before signing and acquiring Greinke, Ryu, and Beckett, the team still had Chad Billingsley, Aaron Harang, Chris Capuano, and Ted Lilly signed for the 2013 season.
But, you have to wonder whether the Dodgers spent money in the right places this winter. Surely, there wasn’t a large market of free agent third baseman, but is Luis Cruz the real answer there in 2013? The club had Hanley Ramirez playing there last season, but they’ve moved him back to shortstop, even with Dee Gordon, who struggled in 2012 as a rookie but can change a game with 56 stolen bases in just 143 games, still with the organization and probably going to Triple-A.
The club had pursued Scott Rolen before he decided to take some time to think about his options after the Cincinnati Reds moved on from the veteran. He could still become an option if the club doesn’t move Ramirez back to third or actually go with Cruz all season. Based on MLBTradeRumors.com Free Agent Tracker, the only remaining free agents at the hot corner are Rolen, Orlando Hudson, Adam Kennedy, and Miguel Cairo…not really the cream of the crop.
The issue becomes, is any team willing to part with a third baseman that could actually improve the Dodgers lineup?
Jordan Pacheco, Ryan Wheeler, or Chris Nelson could be a decent fit, and the Colorado Rockies seem to be a team constantly in need of starting pitching help, but as the team is finding its identity, why would they take on a veteran when they could give a rotation spot to Juan Nicasio, Christian Friedrich, or Tyler Chatwood?
With the Arizona Diamondbacks acquiring Martin Prado, could Matt Davidson, a slugging third base prospect, become expendable? While it would be a nice addition, the Diamondbacks are loaded at pitching right now, with Ian Kennedy, Wade Miley, Trevor Cahill, Brandon McCarthy, and Randall Delgado, not to mention Tyler Skaggs, Patrick Corbin, and a soon-to-return Dan Hudson, so why would they need another arm?
While the Dodgers may want Ramirez at short, he’s probably better off at third so that the club can play Dee Gordon and see what they have in the 25-year-old, but the abundance of pitching will still be an issue. Can they keep Harang, Capuano, and Lilly in a relief role? Should they deal the veteran starters for any kind of minor league depth, considering the current state of the farm system for the Dodgers?
It’s great to have a lot of money, but that doesn’t change the fact that each team keeps 25 players active and has a 40-man roster…nothing more. While the additions of Greinke and Ryu could lead the Dodgers to the World Series, they were a part of a series of questionable moves considering the pieces that were already in place and the money that was spent.
GM for the Day: Arizona Diamondbacks
After going 94-68 last season, the Diamondbacks are building a roster that looks like it could be a juggernaut. With recent acquisitions and rumors of more deals that could happen, Arizona is well on their way to another AL West title, featuring young stars that could eventually create a dynasty. Let’s take a look at their current 25-man roster:
2 Catchers: Miguel Montero and Henry Blanco
1B: Paul Goldschmidt
2B: Aaron Hill
3B: Ryan Roberts
SS: Stephen Drew
LF: Gerardo Parra
CF: Chris Young
RF: Justin Upton
Bench: Willie Bloomquist (INF/OF), John McDonald (INF), Geoff Blum (INF/OF), Lyle Overbay (1B)
Starting Pitchers: Ian Kennedy, Trevor Cahill, Daniel Hudson, Josh Collmenter and Wade Miley
Relief Pitchers: J.J. Putz, David Hernandez, Brad Ziegler, Joe Patterson, Craig Breslow, Takashi Saito and Bryan Shaw
The starting lineup is solid, presenting a blend of power and speed that would be difficult for other teams to match. Justin Upton will win an MVP in the next three years. At the age of 23, Upton ripped 39 2B and 31 HR while stealing 21 bases in 2011. As he continues to mature as a hitter, those extra-base hits will increase and the steals will go down as he touches home with one swing. If someone gets hurt, though, the Diamondbacks could be in trouble. They have some great flexibility with their defensive lineup due to the versatility of Geoff Blum, John McDonald and Willie Bloomquist, but you have to wonder what having one of those guys starting for an extended period of time would do to your offense. The same goes for the dropoff from Miguel Montero to Henry Blanco behind the plate. Blanco is still a solid defender, but he is a career .228/.293/.369 hitter.
The bullpen is solid. The rotation is stacked and it could get better. Trevor Bauer, the team’s 1st round pick last season, is just about ready. The UCLA-product didn’t pitch extremely well in his debut last year, but he showcased his ability to pitch. He posted a 5.96 ERA and 1.52 WHIP in 7 starts, tossing 25 2/3 innings with a 43/12 K/BB. 15.1 K/9 IP is pretty impressive but the 4.2 BB/9 IP is something that needs to come down if he is going to be successful in the Majors. Ian Kennedy, Daniel Hudson and Trevor Cahill are about as solid as a 1-2-3 punch you’ll find in baseball. Josh Collmenter is just 25 and posted a solid 3.38 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and a 100/28 K/BB in 154 1/3 IP last season. As far as another arm for right now, the Diamondbacks appear to be in on Hiroki Kuroda. If they were to get him and put Collmenter in the #5 spot, they would be near impossible to beat. Kuroda has only posted a 3.45 ERA and 1.19 WHIP over 699 career innings and 114 starts. On a one-year deal, he would bring another stable arm to the group, with Kuroda being the veteran with four years of service time. If they do nothing, Wade Miley, who went 4-2 with a 4.50 ERA and 1.65 WHIP in 7 starts, isn’t a bad options for a few months while Bauer works out some kinks.
Overall, the team doesn’t have much to work on. I would say that they would be better off with Hiroki Kuroda as their #4 starter and Collmenter at #5 than Collmenter at #4 and Wade Miley at #5. Over the long-haul of the season, it could be a difference of 7-11 wins from Miley to Kuroda, so it’s worth a one-year, $11 million deal to grab him. I would also like to see the club upgrade in the #4 outfielder role. Ryan Roberts can handle the corners in a long-term role with Blum taking over at third, Willie Bloomquist can fill the void in the short-term, but Roberts is more valuable at third with a thin market there. Maybe J.D. Drew will sign with the Diamondbacks to play with his brother. He could be a solid #4 outfielder since he won’t have to play a whole lot, which may result in him staying healthy. He’ll probably retire or want a ridiculous Boras-contract to play, though, so maybe Juan Pierre would be a good fit. He could handle center for Young in a pinch, the corners for a shorter pinch, and he still has enough speed (68 SB in 2010, 27 in 2011) to be a pinch-runner. Here is what the 25-man roster would end up:
2 Catchers: Miguel Montero (please stay healthy!) and Henry Blanco
1B: Paul Goldschmidt
2B: Aaron Hill
3B: Ryan Roberts
SS: Stephen Drew
LF: Gerardo Parra
CF: Chris Young
RF: Justin Upton
Bench: Juan Pierre (OF), Willie Bloomquist (INF/OF), Lyle Overbay (1B), John McDonald (INF)
Starting Pitchers: Ian Kennedy, Daniel Hudson, Trevor Cahill, Hiroki Kuroda and Josh Collmenter
Relief Pitchers: J.J. Putz, David Hernandez, Brad Ziegler, Joe Patterson, Craig Breslow, Takashi Saito and Bryan Shaw
