Helloooooo Fans!
Here in the Northeast, as in much of the rest of the country, Spring trumped Winter’s last blast and is even demonstrating a mid-Summer form. Coming down the stretch of Spring Training’s last couple of weeks, any hurler can only hope for anything resembling that hot start. In the colder early season games it is often difficult to pitch effectively, whether it’s maintaining a loose arm for maximum velocity or gripping the ball to snap off filthy breaking pitches. And, on top of that, hitters are coming out of warm batting cages after spending months in front of video analyzing both their own swing mechanics and pitchers’ tendencies. When the weather is warm, loosening the ole wing seems to only require a few pitches, and the hurlers wear down the sluggers. Homers go down and strikeouts go up in those power vs. power match-ups.
The record balmy weather in 2012 foreshadowing a jump start to good ERAs and fewer slow-pitch softball scores and a reader suggestion to rank today’s pitchers are reasons enough to take a look at the hurlers who are the best at what they do AND are the best to build a contending ball club around. The criteria are based on the previous season’s W’s, ERA, WHIP, IP, and age. The cross-section of those stats determined a list of 33 pitchers appearing in or near the top 10 in any single category. Each player received a point ranking for every category based on statistical standings. The LOWEST score is the best score. Here’s how it works: the older players received a higher number (older is worse in this case) while the most wins, lowest ERA, lowest WHIP, and most IP were assigned ones (the best). By the way, Fantasy Leagues and Sabre-metric-crazed fans go overboard sometimes about overlooking wins, but we want guys who pitch well in tight games. They are out there to win after all. Conversely, strikeouts are exciting, but we want any and all kinds of outs so there is no need to give extra credit in the real world. Money and contract demands are no issue as we need to know who the best is before pursuing any player. The order is from 10 to 1 and relievers need not apply!
Number 10: Cole Hamels comes in with a score of 66 as he had a great 0.99 WHIP last year and the lefty is heading into either contract talks this year with Philly or testing free agency come November so you know his motivation is high….Number 9 is Dan Haren of the Angels with a cool 59, who can strike ya out while allowing a WHIP just north of Hamels at 1.02. Another Philly lefty appears at No. 8, Cliff Lee, sporting a 54, a big contract, and finishing ’11 in the Top 10 in all categories except his age received a 27. I love watching that guy cruise through a game AND run off the field like he’s got somewhere to be (and like they all used to). Former Yank farm hand and prospect, Ian Kennedy nudged Lee for 7th with a 51 as he led Arizona to the playoffs with the 2nd most Wins in ’11 with 21. The third Philly, Doc Halladay, comes in tied for 5th (therefore no number 6) with a 49 as he was in the Top 8 in the pitching categories, but pulled a 28 for age. No need to explain the future Hall of Famer’s dominance as his reputation precedes any ranking system. Tampa Bay Ray James “Big Game” Shields hangs with Roy with his own score of 49 as he was 9th in W’s, ERA, and WHIP while pitching the 2nd most innings in ’11. Impressive for sure and he should be more well known.
O.K. fans onto the best four just like in the days of four man rotations. Old school! Strikeout power pitcher Jered Weaver rings in the No. 4 spot with a separate yourself from pack score of 38. He’s in the Top 6 in everything pitching wise and he’s still not 30 years old. Plus, he’ll back down from no one as he got tossed against Detroit for beaning a batter after Carlos Guillen mocked him running the bases. Batters beware!! You may have noticed the criteria were based on “previous season stats” above. Well, that’s because our No.3 man didn’t pitch last year at all. In 2010, he was Top 4 in W’s, ERA, and WHIP while throwing the 6th most innings. He’s back and ready to go, way ahead of schedule coming off of Tommy John surgery, so look out for Adam Wainwright at a ballpark near you! He’s still only 30 and ready to show you why he scored a 37.
There’s two more left to go fans. Who ya got…Lincecum, C.C., how ’bout King Felix? Nah, number 2 is Justin Verlander with a score of Two-four. He picked up the AL Cy Young AND MVP last year so it’s no suprise he got the most Wins while pitching the most innings in all of MLB last year. He can do it all, strike ’em out, ground ’em out, or fly ’em out! Just plan on winning when J.V. takes the hill. And our NUMBER 1 best pitcher to build our club around is lefty ace and 2011 N.L. Cy Young Award and Gold Glove Winner, Clayton Kershaw, from the Dodgers. He’s only 24, pitched the 9th most innings, ranked tied for 2nd in Wins, had the BEST ERA, and was also 2nd in WHIP for a score of 15! WOW! Boy, that’s a heckuva resume! Plus, he’s a sturdy 6′ 3″ tall and weighs in at 215 pounds so he is less likely to break down before his prime years are through. He’s accomplished a ton early in his career and may still be getting better with mid to high 90’s velocity on his fastball, a low 90’s slider and a nasty fall-off-the-table curveball. What else could you ask for out of your ace!?
Well fans, there you have it, the Top 10 2012 Best Arms to start a club with. Obviously, all of these guys are incredible at what they do. You can’t go wrong with any of them, and the 23 guys who didn’t crack this list are pretty good too. The Angels have two of them while Philly has three. Who knows, maybe they’ll meet in October this year for an old-fashioned East-West battle in the Fall Classic? One thing is for sure, if they do, there won’t be too many balls flying out the parks with those guys dealing!
Later Fans.